A Virginia woman convicted of killing a fellow Navy sailor while attempting to intervene in a personal argument has learnt her destiny.
Nildaliz Flores-Roman, 27, was sentenced to 28 years in prison last week after being found guilty of second-degree murder and using a firearm in the commission of murder in the 2024 shooting death of Petty Officer First Class Katrina Ann Anderson, 28, according to a release from the Norfolk Commonwealth Attorney’s office.
On March 15, 2024, Flores-Roman’s wife and Anderson, both sailors aboard the USS Mahan in Norfolk, went out with friends to celebrate Anderson’s 28th birthday.
Flores-Roman went out with a different set of buddies. Later that night, both groups ended up in the same location in downtown Norfolk.
Hours later, just after 2 a.m., when the three returned to Flores-Roman’s apartment, she and her wife began bickering in the parking lot, according to the Commonwealth Attorney.
Anderson interfered when Flores-Roman grabbed her wife’s arm and attempted to push her inside the flat, and she and Flores-Roman began fighting.
The battle stopped, and the three women entered the apartment. However, Flores-Roman appeared to be extremely heated following the altercation. According to the Commonwealth Attorney, she walked into her bedroom to retrieve her firearm.
As Anderson dashed to the front door, Flores-Roman’s wife yelled at her to “run.” But it was too late: Flores-Roman fired several shots, including one to the chest.
Anderson slumped on the sidewalk just outside his flat. “As she lay dying, Flores-Roman hit her once in the head with the gun before tossing it and walking away,” the Commonwealth Attorney stated in the release.
Flores-Roman’s wife dialed 911, and Ms. Anderson died soon after doctors and Norfolk police arrived. Flores-Roman was arrested on the scene.
According to the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office, the wife admitted to authorities that she was in an emotionally abusive marriage and that Anderson had previously counseled her and her wife.
Flores-Roman has pled not guilty. In her June trial, the jury deliberated for 20 minutes before convicting her.
“Ms. Anderson, the victim of Ms. Flores-Roman’s crime, was a Good Samaritan who attempted to assist a fellow sailor. “She did not deserve to die,” Commonwealth’s Attorney Ramin Fatehi stated in the announcement.
“Most people who commit murder express some level of regret. If Ms. Flores-Roman had expressed regret for killing her, we would have recommended a shorter sentence. I grieve Ms. Anderson and send my heartfelt sympathies to her family.”
If you are experiencing domestic violence, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or
