LAS VEGAS, N.M. (KRQE) – A man has been sentenced to life in prison. The sentencing comes after a guilty verdict in a first-degree murder case.
A release from the Fourth Judicial District Attorney said that Seig Isaac Chavez, 43, was sentenced to life in prison for the first-degree murder of William “Skip” Smith, 71. A guilty verdict was reached after a three-day trial in San Miguel County.
The release stated Chavez was charged after a stabbing that occurred on August 15, 2019. It is alleged that Smith was picked up by Chavez at a restaurant around 6:40 p.m. on the date of the stabbing. The next morning, Smith was found dead in an alley.
Examiners stated that Smith had 24 different stabbings from the top of his head to his knee. Smith’s cause of death was determined to be “multiple sharp force injuries of the head, neck, trunk, and extremities.” Blood DNA was found in Chavez’s vehicle and a jacket found in his home, State representation alleged. An expert from the New Mexico Crime Lab testified the blood DNA matched Smith’s DNA.
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Smith’s sister gave a victim impact statement at the hearing. She said Chavez “took William’s life so brutally, is very sick, and needs help and redemption.” She then said, “I would hate to think he would ever have the chance to harm another person. I always felt that the people in Las Vegas, by and large, were very kind to Skip and everyone seemed to know and care for him. I was truly astonished how many people came to share their condolences for Skip and the outpouring of love they shared with me for my brother.”