Elementary teacher who allegedly said her husband stabbed himself charged in his death
04/07/2025 12:15 pm PDT
FARMINGTON, N.M. (TCN) -- A 51-year-old woman stands accused of killing her husband, who was found stabbed to death several years ago.
According to the Farmington Police Department, on Nov. 29, 2020, officers responded to a home on South Ivie Avenue and discovered 49-year-old Robert Hoefer with three apparent stab wounds. The reporting party, Heather Fernandez-Hoefer, reportedly provided inconsistent statements to authorities.
Per an affidavit obtained by KRQE-TV, Fernandez-Hoefer allegedly said her husband, Hoefer, stabbed himself while she was in another room. She reportedly told investigators she cleaned up his chest before they went to bed separately, and then Fernandez-Hoefer found him face-down on their bedroom floor.
According to the affidavit, police located evidence of blood on the bed but not the floor. There was reportedly no blood evidence outside the bedroom other than from a washcloth allegedly used to clean the victim’s chest.
KRQE reports that an autopsy revealed Hoefer suffered three stabs wounds that were deep enough to pierce his lungs and cut his coronary artery.
Through digital evidence, investigators reportedly learned that Fernandez-Hoefer and her husband got into an argument over money and Hoefer’s previous relationship. Their neighbor allegedly heard the dispute between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. on the night of the victim’s stabbing death.
Police announced April 1 that they arrested and charged Fernandez-Hoefer with second-degree murder and tampering with evidence.
According to KRQE, Fernandez-Hoefer worked as a McCormick Elementary third grade teacher, but the school district confirmed that she is on administrative leave.
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