Oakleaf Plantation murder suspect arrested

44-year-old Adrian Seward arrested in Jacksonville

JACKSONVILLE, Fla – The Clay County Sheriff's Office confirmed Sunday morning that 44-year-old Adrian Seward, the man wanted for murdering his ex wife Thursday night in Oakleaf, has been taken into custody without further incident.

The U.S. marshals task force took Seward into custody with the assistance of Jacksonville Sheriff's Office at the Econo Lodge just off of I-95 and J Turner Butler Blvd.

A guest at the hotel was surprised by the scene Sunday morning.

"I was coming down stairs, and I was just running out to my car real quick, and I saw that they had machine guns, and they were running after somebody," he said.

"Then they just surrounded the whole area, probably 20 cop cars just in the area. They had the very front entrance blocked off in front of the building."

Jacksonville Sheriff's Office booking photo of Adrian Seward from prior arrest

Clay County Sheriff's spokeswoman Mary Justino confirms that Seward (pictured, right, from previous arrest) has been booked into the Clay County Jail. According to Justino, information about people who may have helped Seward elude arrest is being collected.

Investigators had been searching for Seward since late Thursday night after they say he shot and killed his ex wife, 33-year-old Lashawna Criswell-Seward, on a neighbor's doorstep as she ran for help.

According to the Department of Corrections website, Adrian Seward served 5.5 years in prison on a 1987 charge of attempted murder, and 8 years on a 1996 assault with a dangerous weapon charge.

Court documents show that the Seward's had just finalized a divorce on July 22 after three years of marriage.

It is likely that Seward will go before a judge on Monday.

We will continue to update this story as it develops.