ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A Thoreau woman and her accomplice have been sentenced to 19 years in federal prison for the gruesome 2020 murder of a Gamerco woman, authorities announced Wednesday. The sentencing of Stacey Yellowhorse, 53, and her then-boyfriend Timothy Chischilly, 51, marks the conclusion of a harrowing case that shocked communities across northwest New Mexico.
According to court documents, the pair, both enrolled members of the Navajo Nation, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder earlier this year in connection with the death of Jane Doe.
On January 23, 2020, Yellowhorse and Chischilly lured Doe to Chischilly’s residence in Mexican Springs, north of Gallup, where they restrained her by nailing her hands and head to the floor. Court records explain the couple then bludgeoned Doe to death before burning her remains and scattering them across multiple locations on the Navajo Nation.
Adding to the cruelty, Yellowhorse and Chischilly misled Doe’s family in the days following the murder.
According to court documents, Yellowhorse went to see Doe’s family just days after the murder to personally assure the victim's relatives, including her seven-year-old daughter, that they would find Doe safe. Yellowhorse falsely claimed that she had dropped Doe off at a local restaurant.
The case unraveled after Chischilly confessed to his family on January 27, 2020, detailing the murder. His admission led to the arrests of both defendants on February 1, 2020.
Both Yellowhorse and Chischilly have now been sentenced to 19 years in prison and ordered to pay $5,355.60 in restitution. Upon their release, they will face five years of supervised probation. Under federal law, there is no parole in the federal prison system.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI's Gallup Resident Agency, with significant assistance from the Navajo Nation Police Department, the Navajo Nation Department of Criminal Investigations, and the Gallup Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kimberly Brawley and Tavo Hall.