Insets: Ryan Dodd (Oswego police) and Ashley Stewart (GoFundMe). Background: The 400 block of Valentine Way in Oswego, Illinois, where Dodd allegedly killed Stewart (WMAQ).
A man stabbed his ex-wife to death after he chased her into her home as her new husband watched in horror on security cameras, authorities in Illinois say.
Ryan D. Dodd, 44, stands accused of first-degree murder, home invasion, armed violence, residential burglary and aggravated stalking in the death of 41-year-old Ashley Stewart in Oswego, which is about 40 miles west of Chicago.
Cops responded shortly after 1 p.m. Tuesday to a home in the 400 block of Valentine Way for a home invasion in progress. Stewart”s husband called 911 after seeing a man chasing his wife into the garage on the home’s surveillance cameras. Officers rushed to the home but found she was already dead, suffering from numerous stab wounds. The husband believed the suspect to be Dodd, Stewart’s ex-husband.
Dodd was arrested about 30 minutes after the slaying when a cop spotted his vehicle and took him into custody. An investigation revealed that Dodd allegedly followed Stewart into her home and attacked her. Cops released surveillance images that appeared to show Dodd hiding behind some bushes. Prosecutors filed formal charges on Thursday. He’s being held without bond at the Kendall County Jail. His next court date is set for March 9.
Stewart leaves behind six children, including a 2-year-old son.
“She was a devoted wife and loving mother, and her loss has left an immeasurable void in the lives of those who loved her,” a GoFundMe said.
One of her friends told local NBC affiliate WMAQ that Stewart always put her family first.
“She really, really loved her family. She loved her kids,” Robin Ross said. “Nobody could ever, ever mistake how much love she put into her family.”
Ross called her friend a “genuine, beautiful life spirit” who had a “bright future ahead of her.”
“She would drop anything she needed to do to help out anybody, no matter,” Ross said in an interview with WMAQ.
