Texas Man Sentenced to Life for Killing Girlfriend Whose Bones Were Found in Backyard Burn Pit
Jeffrey Lee Devorah, 47, was sentenced to life in prison with parole eligibility after 30 years for murdering Tiffany Garza in 2019. Fourteen human bone fragments were recovered from a burn pile on his property.
Texas Man Gets Life Sentence After Girlfriend's Bone Fragments Found in Backyard Burn Pile
A 47-year-old Texas man has been sentenced to life in prison for the 2019 murder of his girlfriend, Tiffany Garza, whose remains were discovered in a backyard burn pit on his property.
An Atascosa County judge handed down the sentence against Jeffrey Lee Devorah, making him eligible for parole after 30 years, authorities announced. The sentencing followed a jury verdict in August finding Devorah guilty of murder.
As Law & Crime reported, Garza was last seen on March 25, 2019, in Poteet — approximately 30 miles south of San Antonio. Her mother, Lilly Morua, filed a missing persons report on April 26 of that year after Garza was dropped off at a Dollar General store and never returned.
A tip received in July 2019 led Atascosa County Sheriff's Office investigators and Texas Rangers to a witness who, according to a press release from the Atascosa County District Attorney's Office, "reported seeing Garza's murder and helping burn her body in Devorah's backyard."
Investigators conducted a three-day search of the property that month, uncovering significant blood evidence inside the house. A two-day sifting of the burn pit behind the residence yielded critical forensic evidence.
"Experts from Texas State University's Forensic Anthropology Center recovered 14 human bone fragments from the burn pile," the DA's office release states. "They were able to confirm the bones were those of a female between the age of 22 and 56. Tiffany was 37 at the time she was heinously murdered."
DNA analysis by the Bexar County Crime Lab produced a profile that matched Garza.
During a 2019 interview with investigators, Devorah acknowledged Garza had been living at the property but denied any knowledge of her death or disappearance. Investigators determined Garza was likely killed between March 28 and April 4, 2019.
Prosecutors said Devorah "made admissions to an ex-girlfriend that were consistent with the physical evidence and the witness' statements." He was arrested in March 2023 and charged with murder.
Garza's family and close friends attended the sentencing in Atascosa County. District Attorney Audrey Gossett Louis said in a statement: "No sentence can restore what her family has lost, but Tiffany's life — and the truth about what happened to her — deserved every bit of that effort. Tiffany's life mattered. Our thoughts remain with her family and everyone who loved her."
Garza's daughter, Natalie Garza, paid tribute to her mother in a Facebook post, describing her as a "wonderful mom, friend, poker partner, head chef, nail tech, hair stylist, wardrobe stylist, cheerleading and dance coach and every other role she had in my life."
Natalie Garza wrote that she was pregnant with her own daughter when she last saw her mother in 2019, and that Garza had been looking forward to becoming a grandmother. "My daughter is 7 now. She would've adored her," Natalie wrote.
Source: Law & Crime