Imani Armstrong

Imani Armstrong was a 25-year-old mother from Virginia who had moved to New York to build a new life. Her family described her as a "light" and a beacon of positivity who was deeply loved. To support her children, who were in foster care, she worked two jobs, one as a waitress at an IHOP near Union Square and another as an exotic dancer. Though she faced significant struggles, including a recent separation and time spent in a domestic abuse shelter, she was actively working to regain custody of her children.

In the pre-dawn hours of September 1, 2022, Armstrong was walking home after finishing her shift at the IHOP. As she reached the corner of East 14th Street and Irving Place around 5 a.m., a man ran up behind her and shot her once in the back of the head at point-blank range. Emergency responders pronounced the young woman dead at the scene. The attack was not random; investigators learned the killer had waited outside her workplace for nearly seven hours, following her for several blocks before the ambush.

The investigation quickly focused on Armstrong’s ex-boyfriend, 44-year-old Clarkson Wilson, who was the father of one of her children. The two had dated for about six months before Armstrong tried to end the relationship. Surveillance video captured Wilson waiting for Armstrong, following her, fleeing the scene, changing his clothes in a subway station, and taking a train back to his home in Brooklyn. Police arrested Wilson on September 3, 2022. A search of his home uncovered the clothes he wore during the shooting and two firearms. Wilson had an extensive criminal history, including prior domestic violence complaints involving other women.

A Manhattan grand jury indicted Wilson on charges of second-degree murder and two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, to which he pleaded not guilty. The case proceeded to trial, where prosecutors laid out the evidence of what they called a "calculated, callous, and deadly" act of domestic violence.

On December 10, 2025, a New York State Supreme Court jury convicted Clarkson Wilson on all counts. On February 27, 2026, he was sentenced to 25 years to life in state prison.