MISSOURI STATE HIGHWAY PATROL
a division of the
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY

Troop D Headquarters - 3131 East Kearney St. - Springfield, MO 65803


News Release

For further information please contact: Sergeant Michael McClure
417-895-6868
D2022-1
January 14, 2022

EMPHASIS: Two Subjects Charged In Stone County Homicide

The Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control announces that formal charges have been filed in connection with the November 20, 2021, homicide of Billy M. Walker.

On December 15, 2021, the Dade County Sheriff requested the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control’s assistance when a deceased male, later identified as Billy M. Walker, 58, of Galena, Missouri, was discovered near County Road 187, north of Route EE, in Dade County. Autopsy results revealed the manner of death as homicide. Investigators with the Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control were assisted by the Stone County Sheriff’s Office throughout the investigation.

On January 14, 2022, the Stone County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office formally charged Sheila Renee Phillips, 57, and Gerald Keith Hoffman, 54, both from Galena, Missouri, with two counts each of tampering with physical evidence in a felony prosecution. The homicide occurred in Stone County, and the victim was subsequently taken to a rural location in Dade County. Both Phillips and Hoffman are being held in the Stone County Jail without bond.

The above charges are mere accusations and are not evidence of guilt. Evidence in support of the charges must be presented before a court of competent jurisdiction whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
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