BEDFORD COUNTY, Va. – UPDATE:
Trenton Frye was sentenced to life in prison on Tuesday.
ORIGINAL STORY:
It only took a Bedford County jury an hour to find Trenton Frye guilty of the first-degree murder of Katlyn Lyon Montgomery.
“Justice has been served today for Katlyn,” Katlyn’s aunt Tina Hopkins said.
The four-day trial turned into five days.
Jurors even heard testimony from Frye himself, where he recounted their relationship, including their miscarriage and financial struggles that led to their breakup in September of 2022.
Friday morning, jurors listened to each side make one last argument.
“You have the final word to say justice is served,” Commonwealth’s Attorney Wes Nance said to the jury.
Prosecutors argued that Frye stalked Katlyn and consistently lied to both law enforcement and the jury.
“The coward killer, Jacob Frye. Katlyn didn’t have the opportunity to make a sound,” Nance said.
The defense argued that while you can place Frye in the area, you can’t place him in the apartment.
“The circumstances, ‘Well, that’s a little odd that he was in Lynchburg instead of North Carolina.’ That’s not enough. It doesn’t matter what happened outside that apartment; what matters is what happened inside the apartment,” Frye’s attorney Joseph Sanzone said.
And what happened inside the apartment was that Frye strangled Katlyn to death.
Katlyn’s family says it will never bring her back, but it’s a step towards closure.
“Nothing can make this better, but having Trenton Frye held accountable for his actions brings our family a little bit of peace,” Hopkins said.
They’re turning their grief into action following the verdict.
“Katlyn was the brightest light in the room. Her death has given us the fuel to help other victims of domestic violence,” Hopkins said.
Frye faces life in prison. The sentencing will be set for a later date.
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