A visit home for a wedding celebration ended in tragedy for 33-year-old William J. Waugh, a former Waterloo resident who was living in Euless, Texas. On the night of Thursday, September 29, 2022, Waugh and his wife, Sara, were in their hometown to celebrate the upcoming wedding of close friends. What began as a joyous occasion making memories with friends took a dark turn.
Following a dispute at a local bar, the conflict escalated and moved to a home on Route 96 in Waterloo where a
wedding was planned. In the early hours of September 30, at approximately 1:08 a.m., a call was made to the Seneca County E-911 Center reporting that a man had been shot. Upon arrival, law enforcement and emergency responders found Waugh shot on an enclosed porch. The suspects had already fled the scene. Waugh was rushed to Geneva General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
An intensive investigation was launched by the Seneca County Sheriff's Office, with assistance from multiple other law enforcement agencies. This led to the identification and arrest of two suspects. Christopher T. Kesterson, 36, of Phelps, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder and first-degree assault for his role in the incident. The man who authorities believe pulled the trigger, 37-year-old Wayne J. Ellison, Jr., of Waterloo, fled to Florida. He was later apprehended in Tampa on an arrest warrant for second-degree murder, criminal use of a firearm, burglary, and endangering the welfare of a child. Investigators were able to locate the murder weapon thanks to information retrieved from the suspect vehicle's infotainment system.
The legal process that followed saw multiple delays, including a mistrial in December due to a procedural error. As the retrial was set to begin in April 2024, Wayne Ellison Jr. pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter. In June 2024, Ellison was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Christopher Kesterson, who was accused of providing the weapon to Ellison, was acquitted of murder but found guilty of weapons possession. He received a sentence of 15 years in prison. The motive for the tragic shooting is believed to have stemmed from the earlier bar fight.
