WICHITA COUNTY, TEXAS — A New Mexico woman who claimed her missing husband had gone fishing in Mexico with another woman has been arrested and charged with his murder, after authorities discovered his decomposing body hidden beneath trash in the couple’s carport.
Deana Thetford was taken into custody in Texas following the discovery of her 60-year-old husband, Craig Thetford, whose body had been missing for months.
She is now being held without bond at the Wichita County Jail, facing charges of first-degree murder and evidence tampering in a disturbing case that has shocked local residents and authorities.
According to investigators, Craig was reported missing in May by concerned family members, who noted they had not heard from him since January.
On June 17, Otero County Sheriff’s deputies executed a search warrant and discovered his remains wrapped in black plastic, blankets, and rugs, concealed under household debris in the couple’s Alamogordo home carport. The body was also covered in a white powder and mothballs, presumably to mask the odor and slow decomposition.
During initial police interviews on May 15, Deana told deputies that she and Craig were divorcing and that he had “gone down to Mexico with his new girlfriend to fish.” She also pointed out two safes she said belonged to her husband, claiming they contained up to $1.5 million in cash, money she insisted he took with him.
However, Deana’s story began to unravel. In a follow-up interview, she altered her claims, stating Craig had instead traveled to Texas to care for his mother, an assertion refuted by Craig’s sister. Investigators noted inconsistencies, including her admission that Craig had a new phone, the number of which she didn’t know.
Deputies also observed security cameras on the property that Deana said were inoperative, and a suspicious 4- to 5-foot hole in the front yard. She explained the hole was intended for a “raised garden bed.”
A pivotal break in the case came when Deana’s daughter contacted police, revealing a disturbing phone conversation she had with her mother on May 13. During the call, Deana reportedly confessed that she and Craig had a heated argument during which he pushed her down the stairs. “Blinded by rage,” Deana allegedly admitted to shooting him multiple times.
Unsure of what to do with the body, she confessed to leaving him in the pool room for up to two days before wrapping his remains in a rug and plastic. She then used a tractor to drag the corpse into the carport, where it was later found by police.
When authorities revisited the property in June, bodycam footage confirmed the presence of Craig’s body under a pile of trash, exactly where Deana had told her daughter she left it.
An autopsy concluded that Craig Thetford had been dead for several weeks to months and had suffered multiple gunshot wounds. His death was ruled a homicide.
By that time, Deana had relocated to Seymour, Texas, where she had purchased property with cash back in February. Investigators later opened the previously inaccessible safes and discovered approximately $84,200 in cash, along with firearms and ammunition, contradicting her earlier claims that she couldn’t access them.
Authorities noted that locals had become suspicious about Deana’s sudden wealth, sparking further scrutiny.
Deana Thetford is now behind bars in Texas, awaiting extradition to New Mexico. Her arrest marks a significant development in what law enforcement is calling one of the more chilling cases of domestic violence and financial deception in recent local history.
