In the late hours of a Tuesday night, on March 10, 2026, a sense of unease led a friend to the Indianapolis home of Kimberly Stewart. The 51-year-old woman, known for her business of buying and fixing up cars for resale, had been uncharacteristically out of touch. Upon arriving at her residence on South Lynhurst Drive, her friend found her dog, which was usually kept inside, wandering in the yard and the back door unlocked. A growing concern prompted the friend to call her cell phone, and the faint sound of its ringtone led to a grim discovery in the backyard. There, Kimberly Stewart was found unresponsive, having sustained traumatic injuries. Emergency medics were called to the scene, but it was too late; she was pronounced dead.
The investigation into Kimberly's death quickly focused on her 45-year-old boyfriend, Travis Wolfe. Friends and neighbors described a tumultuous relationship, with frequent arguments between the couple. One friend characterized Wolfe as a "psychopath maniac" who was known to carry an axe and had been making threats to kill people in the days leading up to the incident. An autopsy would later reveal that Kimberly had died from multiple blunt force trauma injuries, consistent with being struck with the blunt side of an ax.
Within hours of finding Kimberly's body, Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department detectives located Travis Wolfe on the city's east side. He was initially taken into custody on an outstanding warrant for unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon. During questioning, Wolfe admitted to arguing with Kimberly on the day of her death but denied striking her with an axe. However, a neighbor reported hearing a woman scream and seeing a man matching Wolfe's description swinging a club or hammer-like object towards the ground in the area where her body was later found. Police also discovered traces of blood in the car he was driving, which belonged to Kimberly. Subsequently, Travis Wolfe was arrested on a preliminary charge of murder in connection with the death of Kimberly Stewart. The Marion County Prosecutor's Office will make the final charging decisions.
