A New York woman who flew to Florida to confront her ex-boyfriend’s new girlfriend — a woman who had blocked her on social media — has been convicted of first-degree murder in connection with a brutal 2022 killing.
According to court records, a Broward County jury found 31-year-old Sakiyna Thompson guilty on Oct. 15 of murdering 23-year-old Kayla Hodgson, whom she saw as a romantic rival. The case has deeply affected loved ones in both New York and South Florida.
Investigators said Thompson traveled from New York to South Florida in the days leading up to the killing after learning that Hodgson was in a relationship with her former boyfriend and had blocked her online, per NBC 6 South Florida, Local 10 News and a Broward Sheriff’s Office press release.
Using a fake Uber account, Thompson went to Hodgson’s apartment complex around 5 a.m. on July 13, 2022, the outlets reported. Surveillance footage shows a woman wearing a wide-brimmed hat, a COVID-19 mask and gloves at the victim’s door.
Jurors were shown graphic police bodycam footage and autopsy images that highlighted the severity of the attack, NBC 6 reported. Prosecutors pointed to Thompson’s disguise and early-morning arrival as evidence that the killing was premeditated rather than a crime of passion.
Thompson was linked to the crime through flight records, cellphone data and items recovered from the scene, according to NBC 6, Local 10 News and CBS Miami.
She was arrested in New York on Aug. 3, 2022, and later extradited to Florida to face the murder charge, per the Broward Sheriff’s Office.
On the stand, Thompson testified that she “blacked out” during the confrontation and claimed she acted to protect herself and her unborn child, NBC 6 reported. Closing arguments focused on whether the killing was planned or done in self-defense.
“Being violated in your own home, in the sanctity of your own home, is a scary thing,” Assistant State Prosecutor Tonya Johnson told jurors in her closing argument, according to NBC 6. “What’s even scarier is being attacked, being brutally murdered in your own home, and that person getting away with it.”
Following the verdict, Hodgson’s family told the outlet they were thankful the jury “was able to see the story for what it is — that Kayla did not deserve to die the way that she did.” Her mother, Kerry Hodgson, said the decision brought the family “some peace, knowing justice has been served.”
