Deka Simmons, 40, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole over the 2022 murder of 48-year-old Daxcimo Ceja in Colorado Springs, CO

In addition Simmons was sentenced to 24 years for tampering with a deceased body, and three years for tampering with physical evidence

Prosecutors said Simmons murdered Ceja because he was a sex offender who had a relationship with a 17-year-old girl when he was 25

Simmons shot Ceja in a garage, dismembered his body, and stowed it in a freezer before transporting his remains in a van, cops said

In October 2023, police found Ceja’s body in a drainage ditch after an anonymous tip regarding human remains in a bag

Cops linked the brutal murder to Simmons because of DNA they had recovered from blood in the garage, and she’s since been held in custody at the El Paso County jail on a $20 million cash-only bond

At a previous court hearing in 2022, Simmons was accused of being a suspect in other potential homicides, including the disappearance of Santino “Tino” Cardella

A police confidential informant said Simmons had killed at least three other people besides Ceja

Deka Simmons, [photo], had a ‘fixation’ and ‘paranoia’ fueled by ill-felling and intense disdain for pedophiles. Convicted for killing sex offender Daxcimo Ceja in Colorado Springs. She was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison without parole

A 40-year-old woman who had a ‘paranoia’ about child molesters has been sentenced to life in prison after she murdered a sex offender and dumped his remains in a drainage ditch in Colorado.
Arrested on three charges, including first-degree murder in the death Daxcimo Ceja, her three-week trial ended with Deka Simmons learning that she will spend the rest of her life behind bars without the possibility of parole over the murder of Daxcimo Ceja in Colorado Springs, on February 16, 2022.
According to authorities, Simmons who has long history of weapons-related offenses and several past indictments for homicde starting when she was 18, shot Ceja in a garage, dismembered his body, and stowed it in a freezer before transporting his remains in a van – at a time when there was a warrant out for Ceja’s arrest for failure to register as a sex offender. 
Per the testimony of the owner of the garage, who also happened to be defendant’s roommate, Simmons came to the house with Ceja with no warning, for a drug deal.
She then brought both of them to the garage, where she pulled out a weapon she always carried on he – a .357-caliber handgun and shot Ceja three times in the head.
Simmons was the subject of an intensive investigation that stretched back to April 5, 2022, when she was arrested for the brutal killing.
Although Ceja’s body had not been found, Simmons was charged with first-degree murder after deliberation, violent crime with a weapon and tampering with a deceased human body, among other things.
The drama persisted through a trial twice postponed for various reasons, including allegations of witness tampering and witness intimidation.
At sentencing on Wednesday, prosecutor Sharon Flaherty said in her closing arguments that Simmons murdered 48-year-old Ceja because he was a sex offender who had a relationship with a 17-year-old girl when he was 25, the Colorado Springs Gazette, reports.
Flaherty during closing arguments, described Simmons as a ‘woman with an obsession over child molestation due to fears that her daughter was a victim of sex trafficking.’

Deka Simmons killed Daxcimo Ceja, [photo], because he was a sex offender who had a relationship with a 17-year-old girl when he was 25. She shot him in a garage, dismembered and stowed his body in a freezer, later transported in a van for disposal in a drainage ditch

Officers had linked the brutal murder to Simmons because of DNA they had recovered from blood in the garage across more than 300 stains. 
On October 5, 2023, police found Ceja’s body in a drainage culvert after an anonymous tip regarding human remains in a bag. 
Prosecutor Flaherty told the court Simmons had an intense disdain for pedophiles, ill-feelings which stemmed from an alleged incident which involved her daughter. 
‘[She] has an unrestrained hatred for anyone who would molest a child,’ the prosecutor said, before adding that this feeling of loathing was a ‘fixation’ and a ‘paranoia.’
CSPD detective Jerry Shiffelbei testified that one of Simmons’ previous cellmates told him that she had said that she once murdered a man because she believed he was a child molester. 
Other incriminating evidence came in the form of a Facebook message that the killer allegedly sent to a witness via Facebook messenger. 
‘DID YOU CLEAN THE HOUSE???’ Simmons reportedly sent to someone who was allegedly involved in scouring the garage after the murder. 

In October 2023, police found the remains of Daxcimo Ceja, in a drainage culvert, in Colorado Springs, CO, after an anonymous tip regarding human remains in a bag

Detective Jason Gasper revealed that the Colorado mother believed that her daughter suffered sexual assault at the hands of Simmons’ stepfather, whom she stabbed in 2019 after a furious dispute over custody.
By far most damaging were testimonies by accomplices who either helped with the murder or participated in the cleanup. One notable witness was Michael Suchocki, who allegedly was one of several people to help Simmons clean the garage after the killing,
Colby Veil, an associate of Simmons, records show, pled guilty pled guilty to one count of witness tampering or intimidation in 2023 and was sentenced to 42 months in prison.

Defense attorneys David Lipka, pointed out that DNA evidence of Simmons was not found in the garage where Ceja was killed or in the van that was used to move his body.
The absence of Simmons’ DNA from the crime scene and the van do not exonerate her, prosecution team of Viehman and Flaherty said. It took detectives six weeks to begin investigating the garage, alleging extensive measures were taken by Simmons and others, to clean and destroy evidence.
The prosecution during its closing argument highlighted numerous text threads between Simmons and others that, according to the prosecution, directly implicate her in the shooting. According to the prosecution several witnesses claimed Simmons would later “brag” about killing Ceja.
At a previous court hearing in 2022, Simmons was accused by prosecutors of being a suspect in other potential homicides, including the disappearance of Santino “Tino” Cardella.
One detective testified during the preliminary hearing that a confidential informant told police that Simmons had killed at least three other people besides Ceja.
In two open criminal cases in El Paso County, that predate the Ceja homicide, she is accused of felony menacing and aggravated robbery.
Since her arrest, Simmons has been in custody at the El Paso County jail on a $20 million cash-only bond.
In addition to life in prison without the possibility of parole, Simmons was sentenced to 24 years for tampering with a deceased body, and three years for tampering with physical evidence.