Man accused of beating, burying girlfriend

By Leslie Wood
Staff Writer

Bobby Joe

GALLUP — A 51-year-old Yah-Ta-Hey man was arrested on Tuesday after police found his girlfriend severely injured and buried, up to her waist, in a pile of rocks.

Bobby Joe reportedly led his nearly unconscious girlfriend Virgie Curley barefoot two miles throughout the remote location to evade law enforcement personnel who where called to Joe's residence concerning a domestic dispute. According to an affidavit filed by the sheriff's department for an arrest warrant, Joe struck Curley several times in the face with an ax during an argument at their Rural Address 7 China Springs home. When Curley tried to leave the residence, Joe allegedly grabbed a nearby wooden baseball bat and hit her repeatedly on the arm causing it to fracture.

Joe also reportedly threatened a witness to the argument who called the police. At about 9:30 p.m., Joe forced the woman, by her hair and without shoes, on a 2-mile track throughout the remote hills of the desert.

When Curley began to move slowly due to the pain of walking without socks or shoes, Joe allegedly struck her in the back of the head with the bat. The blow was reportedly severe enough to cause her to lose consciousness for a brief period of time.

Joe reportedly threatened to kill Curley, if she did not continue to walk toward the hills. The pair allegedly walked at a fast pace for more than 30 minutes until Joe left the injured Curley in a cave underneath a pile of rocks. McKinley County Sheriff's deputies and Navajo Police Department officers tracked the pair throughout the dark desert by following Curley's foot prints and blood trail.

Sgt. A. Benally said officers located Curley after hearing her cries for help.

"If it wasn't for those footprints, she would have died," Benally said.

Curley was later transported to the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque for treatment for her injuries.

Joe was arrested on three counts of aggravated battery, three counts of aggravated assault and one count of kidnapping in Gamerco on Tuesday after police obtained a search warrant.

"We were more concerned with making sure the victim was okay than finding him right away," Benally said.

Benally said officers worked to find Curley for nearly four hours and that she was buried underneath the rocks for a matter of minutes before help arrived.

Deputies also located the bat, used in the incident, discarded near the location.