A Colorado woman was sentenced to life in prison for shooting and killing a sex offender before dismembering his body.
On Wednesday, Aug. 21, Deka Simmons, 40, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole after being found guilty of the 2022 murder of Daxcimo Ceja, according to a press release from the 4th Judicial District Attorney's Office.
Simmons Had 'Unrestrained Hatred' for Child Molesters
According to prosecutor Sharon Flaherty, Simmons had "an unrestrained hatred for anyone who would molest a child." In her closing argument, she said that Simmons killed 48-year-old Ceja because he had sex with a 17-year-old girl when he was 25 years old.
Authorities said a witness reported Simmons shot and killed Ceja in a garage before dismembering and freezing his body. Ceja had a warrant out for his arrest at the time of his death for failing to register as a sex offender, as reported by the Colorado Springs Gazette. Simmons was found through DNA she left behind in the garage.
According to police, an investigation into Ceja's homicide began on March 30, 2022 and Simmons was arrested on a first-degree murder charge in relation to the case that April. Ceja's remains were found on Oct. 5, 2023 inside a bag in a drainage culvert in Colorado Springs after local police responded to an anonymous tip.
Simmons was a Suspect in Three Other Homicides
Ceja's mother, Karen Fancher, spoke in court at the sentencing, saying, "[Ceja] was killed for something he did 24 years ago," per the Gazette. "[Simmons] won't be on the street to hurt anyone else's families like she has done her whole entire life."
The outlet reports that Simmons has been suspected in three other homicides but hasn't been charged in connection with any killings aside from Ceja's.
Simmons was also ordered to serve an additional 24 years for tampering with a dead body and another three years for tampering with physical evidence. Her sentences will be served consecutively, per the judge's order, prosecutors said.
