Authorities say human remains have been found in the search for missing Fort Hood soldier Vanessa Guillen. As of July 3, 2020, the remains had not been officially identified.
According to the Bell County Sheriff’s Office, partial remains were found near the Leon River in Bell County on June 30, with more found the next day in a second shallow grave. Officials said the remains were encased in a cement like substance and sent to a lab.
Army Criminal Investigation Command said a fellow soldier, identified as Spc. Aaron, died by suicide on Wednesday when law enforcement tried to contact him after he left Fort Hood. Investigators said earlier reports that he was in Guillen’s chain of command were incorrect.
A woman named Cecily, 22, of Killeen, was also arrested Wednesday. Officials describe her as the estranged wife of a former Fort Hood soldier. Bell County charged her with tampering with physical evidence, and federal authorities filed a charge of conspiracy to tamper with evidence. A federal complaint alleges the soldier told her he struck a female soldier with a hammer on April 22 and asked for her help disposing of the body. Those charges are allegations, and Cecily has not been convicted of anything.
The Guillen family’s attorney, Natalie Khawam, appeared on the podcast Crime Stories With Nancy Grace and shared what she says Army investigators told her. According to Khawam, the soldier struck Guillen with a hammer inside an armory on the base, moved her body off post, and later buried the remains in the area with help from Cecily. Khawam said Guillen had told the soldier she planned to report a relationship he was having that went against Army rules, and that he replied that she was not going to ruin his career.
Khawam also raised questions about the Army’s handling of the case, including how quickly the scene was cleaned and why no one heard anything or no video was available. Those are her concerns, not findings by investigators.
Khawam and the family have said Guillen told them she was being sexually harassed by a superior. Army CID said it had no information at that time to back up claims that the soldier sexually harassed Guillen.
Made to order and shipped to your door.
Guillen’s sister Mayra spoke at a press conference and said she met the soldier on the first day of the search at Fort Hood and that he laughed at her family. She said, “whoever is responsible has to pay.”
Positive identification of the remains was still pending when this story was published. We will keep you posted as officials share more.
