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Missouri Woman Who Disappeared After Being Charged With Husband’s Murder Captured In Indiana

Dawn Wynn allegedly skipped bond while awaiting trial for the 2021 murder of her husband, Harold Wynn, who was shot to death while sleeping in the couple's rural Missouri camper. 

By Jax Miller

The months-long search for a Missouri woman accused of killing her husband has finally ended.

Dawn Renee Wynn, 49, was arrested Monday in Indiana after allegedly spending more than 10 weeks on the run, the McDonald County Sheriff’s Office announced on Monday afternoon. Officials believe the Missouri woman skipped bond and fled on Aug. 14 while awaiting trial for the shooting death of her husband, Harold “Lee” Wynn.

“We’re happy to report that Dawn Wynn is in custody,” said McDonald County Sheriff Rob Evenson. “Earlier this afternoon, we were contacted by authorities in Indiana. Wynn had been recognized from television coverage and the alert citizen reported her to the local authorities.”

Evenson told Law & Crime that Wynn was found at a Vigo County, Indiana motel or hotel after a staff member grew suspicious.

The U.S. Marshals Service also assisted in the arrest, according to CBS Pittsburg, Kansas affiliate KOAM-TV, while jail records reviewed by Oxygen.com list the Terre Haute City Police Department as the arresting agency.

McDonald County prosecutors have alleged that Wynn shot her 51-year-old husband to death on Nov. 16, 2021 as he slept in their camper in the rural Anderson area — Missouri’s southwestern-most region bordering Oklahoma and Arkansas.

Two of the couple’s children were sleeping in the camper’s living quarters when the shooting took place.

Dawn Wynn told authorities she had been asleep when she was woken up by the sound of the gun and the sensation of something “brushing” against her face. She was arrested after investigators collected evidence from the scene, including a .40 caliber pistol, according to NBC Springfield, Missouri affiliate KY3 News.

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McDonald County officials blamed a “Missouri Supreme Court ruling” for allowing Wynn to be free on pre-trial release, something prosecutors — and Wynn’s own daughter — were seemingly against.

“I told them, ‘She will run. I don’t want her out,’” Savannah Wynn told People in August after her mother went missing. “I’m pretty upset about it all.”

Dawn Wynn had been due to check in with the courts by telephone while living with her mother in Pea Ridge, Arkansas, as part of the conditions attached to her release. Officials from Benton County, Arkansas, listed Wynn as a missing person, stating they believed Wynn was headed for northeastern Oklahoma.

Fears grew when it was discovered Wynn left a suicide note before she disappeared.

Savannah told Law & Crime in August that her mother was too much of a “coward” to end her own life, claiming her mother was “too selfish.”

“She’s not someone that you need to trust,” said the daughter. “She’s not just a missing person.”

Savannah spoke to Law & Crime on Monday following Wynn’s arrest.

“She needs to pay for what she has done and put us kids through, and that we all, including my dad and his family, deserve justice,” Savannah told the outlet via text message.

Savannah previously accused her mother of being emotionally and verbally abusive, painting her as a woman who allegedly tried to pit Savannah and her four brothers against Harold. She referred to the Wynns’ marriage as a “disaster.”

Harold's former wife, Melanie Thomas, also spoke with the outlet following Wynn’s arrest.

“When Savannah called me earlier to tell me, I was in tears,” Thomas stated. “This is an early heavenly birthday present for Lee, who would have been 52 this coming Saturday.”

Thomas added it was “time for justice to be served on a man that loved his family and would do anything for anyone,” according to Law & Crime.

Records reviewed by Oxygen.com show Wynn was booked into the Vigo County Jail on Monday afternoon and remains held without bond. She now faces extradition back to McDonald County, Missouri.