The investigation moved from a roadside emergency call to a murder warrant and federal arrest hundreds of miles away.
VERO BEACH, Fla. — At about 8:41 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 16, Indian River County deputies received a call about a woman lying in a roadway near Vero Beach. By Wednesday night, a man accused of killing her was in federal custody at a motel in West Virginia, ending a rapid multi-state search built around witnesses, surveillance footage and travel records.
The woman was Dawn Kriskewic, 52, a local hairdresser and published author. The man arrested was Matthew Allen Waggle, 33, a former boyfriend whom the sheriff’s office initially identified as a person of interest. Investigators obtained a first-degree murder warrant for Waggle on Aug. 19, according to the U.S. Marshals Service. Federal agents arrested him that evening at a Super 8 in Dunbar, West Virginia. The sheriff’s office says Waggle intentionally traveled to Kriskewic’s neighborhood and shot her, but that accusation has not been proved in court.
The first hours of the case centered on First Street, west of U.S. 1 and south of the Vero Beach city limits. Responding deputies found Kriskewic in the roadway suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. They attempted life-saving measures, and she was transported to a trauma center. She was later pronounced dead. Investigators interviewed people in the area, including a witness who authorities said saw the shooting. Deputies also recovered a firearm near the scene. The sheriff’s office treated the death as a homicide from the outset and later described it specifically as a domestic violence case.
As detectives began reconstructing what happened that morning, they focused on Waggle and his prior relationship with Kriskewic. Sheriff Eric Flowers said the two had been in an on-and-off relationship and that Kriskewic recently ended it. Waggle had moved away, according to Flowers. The sheriff said Kriskewic told co-workers at the salon where she worked that she did not want contact with him and instructed them to say she was not there if he called or appeared. Authorities have not publicly released a complete history of the relationship or identified any earlier police reports tied to it.
Investigators say Waggle arrived in the Orlando area by Greyhound and then took an Uber to Indian River County. Surveillance cameras captured his movements after he was dropped off around the corner from Kriskewic’s residence, Flowers said. The sheriff described footage from doorbell cameras and other neighborhood systems showing Waggle walking toward the home. According to investigators, Waggle and Kriskewic had a short interaction before he shot her and left. Flowers said the entire visit lasted about 10 to 15 minutes. That account is an allegation based on investigators’ reconstruction and has not yet been tested at trial.
Sources do not agree on the origin of Waggle’s bus trip before he reached Orlando. Vero News reported that Flowers said Waggle traveled from Arizona, while Law&Crime later described a trip from West Virginia. WPTV reported that the starting location was unknown. The Marshals Service’s arrest announcement did not identify the origin of the southbound trip. The inconsistency does not change the portions of the timeline that are more firmly supported: investigators say Waggle reached Orlando by bus, traveled to Kriskewic’s neighborhood by rideshare and returned to Orlando after the shooting.
After leaving Indian River County, investigators say Waggle boarded another Greyhound bus from Orlando toward North Carolina. The sheriff’s office began working with federal authorities as the search widened beyond Florida. A nationwide alert was issued, and Waggle was considered armed and dangerous while authorities sought him. At the same time, detectives examined the vehicle information associated with the rideshare trips. Flowers said automated license-plate readers helped investigators identify the cars and trace the route connected to Waggle’s movements. The sheriff’s Real Time Crime Center coordinated information as detectives followed leads across jurisdictions.
By Tuesday, Aug. 18, authorities publicly identified Kriskewic and announced that Waggle was being sought. The sheriff’s office said there had been a delay in releasing her name while investigators located and notified relatives outside Florida. Local reports described her as a mother, hairdresser and author. Friends told Treasure Coast Newspapers that Kriskewic had a lively personality and loved the beach. She had published a romance novel called “Knew You Were Waiting” and had recently attended a book signing in Melbourne. A former partner said she was working on another book.
The case took another turn as detectives examined the weapon recovered near the scene. Flowers said the 9 mm Ruger pistol investigators believe was used in the shooting belonged to Waggle’s former wife. Authorities also learned that she had been communicating with Waggle and had made calls connected to a motel in West Virginia, according to the sheriff. Flowers said investigators did not know whether the former wife had been aware of any alleged plan to harm Kriskewic. No charge against her in connection with the homicide had been announced at the time of the sheriff’s detailed briefing.
On Wednesday, Aug. 19, Indian River County investigators obtained a warrant accusing Waggle of first-degree murder. The U.S. Marshals Service said its Florida/Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force developed information showing that Waggle had traveled to West Virginia. Federal agents there were notified, and members of the CUFFED Task Force located the Super 8 motel near Dunbar. The Marshals Service said Waggle was taken into custody without incident at 8 p.m. Federal authorities described the arrest as the product of coordination among task forces, local investigators and other law enforcement partners.
Flowers said Waggle’s former wife was also taken into custody at the motel and cooperated with investigators. Local reporting said she helped authorities locate Waggle inside the property. Two Indian River County detectives traveled to West Virginia to continue interviews, according to the sheriff. Flowers repeatedly credited the department’s analysts and license-plate reader network with accelerating the search. His office said those tools helped connect the Florida rideshare trips to the broader timeline. That investigative success later became part of a separate local debate about the use and regulation of automated license-plate reader technology.
Federal and local agencies initially said Waggle would be extradited to Indian River County to face the first-degree murder charge. The reliable public records located for this report establish the warrant and his Aug. 19 arrest but do not establish a later conviction or other final resolution. Nor have authorities publicly answered every question about the travel route, the former wife’s knowledge or all evidence expected to be presented in court. Those unanswered issues remain distinct from the facts already documented by the Marshals Service and local investigators.
From the original emergency call to the West Virginia arrest, the publicly described investigation unfolded over roughly three days. Kriskewic’s death is established; Waggle’s criminal responsibility is an allegation that prosecutors must prove. Until the case is resolved through a guilty plea or trial, he remains presumed innocent under the law.
Author note: Last updated September 29, 2026.