Family of Iowa woman murdered 14 years ago finds renewed hope with Cold Case Unit

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    WEST DES MOINES, Iowa (KCCI) — Ashley Okland’s family is marking a somber day on Tuesday, as it has been 14 years since her murder, and still no arrests have been made.

Ashley Okland was in the prime of her real estate career, but on April 8, 2011, someone walked into a model townhome in West Des Moines where Okland was holding an open house, shot her twice, and then left. The call came in on a Friday afternoon around 2 p.m. Crime scene tape went up, and West Des Moines police officers flooded the scene 14 years ago.

“When I think about the last time I saw her, yeah, 14 years feels like a long time,” said Josh Okland, Ashley’s brother.

Josh Okland has spent that time wondering why someone would want to kill his sister. He vividly remembers being with her the day before she died.

“April 7th, we spent the entire afternoon together. Her real estate career was booming, and she hired me to be her assistant to work on small stuff for her, make pamphlets. So we sat at Panera in Ankeny for four hours, and she was training me, but yeah, I will never forget that day,” said Josh Okland.

He had no indication that anything was wrong or that she was afraid of anybody. “No. Not at all. And we were very close. If there was something going on, she would have told me,” he said.

West Des Moines police say they’ve interviewed hundreds of people and looked into more than a thousand leads. Right now, detectives say an average of 30 new leads come in each year.

The state’s new Cold Case Unit is now investigating who killed the 27-year-old real estate agent.

Josh Okland was there last summer when Attorney General Brenna Bird announced the state’s new cold case unit alongside several families. He says now one of the unit’s investigators is working on Ashley’s case.

“He is fired up to try to solve it, so it’s exciting,” said Josh Okland.

KCCI broke the story last month when the cold case unit made its first arrest, a murder charge 36 years after Barbara Lenz went missing.

“It shows that this unit is working. It is successful. That makes you feel good that there is hope that this thing is moving in the right direction,” said Josh Okland.

Ashley Okland’s legacy is permanently planted in Ewing Park, where a playground for children with special needs is built in her honor.

“I am proud to be her brother. She impacted so many people in such a positive way and such a good role model for a short 27-year life. Her legacy lives on,” said Josh Okland.

The cold case unit tells KCCI it can’t comment on this pending case.

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