Arrest made in 15-year-old cold case of Iowa realtor Ashley Okland
Arrest made in 15-year-old cold case of Iowa realtor Ashley Okland
Kyle Werner, Des Moines RegisterWed, March 18, 2026 at 10:39 AM UTC
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An arrest has been made in the 15-year-old cold case of 27-year-old Iowa Realtor Ashley Okland.
Kristin Ramsey, 53, was charged with first-degree murder after a Dallas County grand jury issued a indictment, according to a news release from West Des Moines police. Ramsey was arrested on Tuesday, March 17 and is being held in the Dallas County Jail on a $2 million cash bond.
Police did not provide more information on the nature of the charge but planned a news conference for 9 a.m. Wednesday.
Okland, an employee of Iowa Realty Co., was showing a model townhouse in West Des Moines on April 8, 2011, when she was shot twice. An employee with developer Rottlund Homes heard a commotion inside the model townhouse at 558 Stone Creek Court and went to investigate, according to Crime Stoppers of Central Iowa. Inside, the worker discovered Okland on the floor and called 911.
More: A decade after her death, West Des Moines Realtor Ashley Okland's unsolved killing haunts family, friends, police
Okland later died at Iowa Methodist Medical Center in Des Moines.
The mysterious death of the young real estate agent generated headlines in Iowa and around the country. In a news release issued on the four-year anniversary of Okland's death, West Des Moines police said it had investigated nearly 900 leads and interviewed about 500 people.
Crime scene tape flutters in the wind as a West Des Moines police officer stands in front of the site where Ashley Okland was killed on Friday afternoon, April 8, 2011. The building is the model home for the Stone Creek Villa homes, off of EP True Parkway in West Des Moines.
Her photo and case details were featured in a deck of playing cards given to Iowa inmates last year in an effort to obtain new information about ongoing cases. Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird distributed the playing cards about a year after forming a unit dedicated to investigating Iowa's more than 400 cold cases.
Who was Ashley Okland?
Ashley Okland is seen in an undated photo. Okland was shot and killed during an open house at a townhome development in West Des Moines in April 2011.
Okland was born Dec. 30, 1983, in Ames, Iowa, according to her obituary. She grew up in Huxley. As a youth, she was involved in sports, dance, 4-H and piano. She attended Ballard High School. She graduated from Iowa State University in 2006 after transferring from the University of Iowa.
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She began her real estate career in 2007 and was hired by Iowa Realty in 2010.
More: Who killed Ashley Okland? What we know about Iowa Realtor, her 2011 murder in West Des Moines
When not working, Okland was involved in a number of groups, including Young Variety and Big Brothers and Big Sisters.
Okland was "passionate about helping children," her father, Tim, told the Register previously.
In May 2014, Ashley Okland Star Playground, a specialized park for handicapped children, opened in her name.
“Ashley was all-inclusive in her personality, which is exactly what this playground is,” Susan Hatten, a longtime friend of Okland who conceived the idea for the playground, told the Register in 2014. “It caters to children of every ability, whether they have special needs or not, and she would have loved that.”
Located at Ewing Park, 5300 Indianola Ave., the playground features adapted playground equipment for children with cognitive and physical disabilities.
For several years, The Young Professionals Connection awarded the Ashley Okland YP Community Service Award annually to "a young professional who exemplifies the volunteerism and spirit" of Okland, who had been one of the organization's board members.
Kyle Werner is the breaking news and public safety reporter for the Register. Reach him at kwerner@registermedia.com.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Ashley Okland murder case leads to arrest 15 years later
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