Vanessa Guillen, a 20-year-old U.S. army soldier, went missing from the U.S. Fort Hood Army base in Texas where she was stationed. On April 22, 2020 at 1 p.m., she was last seen in the parking lot of her Regimental Engineer Squadron Headquarters on Fort Hood. Allegations that she had been sexually harassed by a superior came to light, along with the fact that during a meeting with Fort Hood officials, Vanessa’s sister reported that the man later identified as a suspect in Vanessa’s disappearance was one of the officials in the meeting and he “laughed in her face.”

It has recently been reported that her likely remains were found in a shallow grave near the Army installation in Texas, possibly bringing a months-long search for her to a tragic end. The remains were encased in a cement-like substance, which have since been sent off to a lab to be tested and identified. 

Law enforcement agencies identified the prime suspect suspect as 20-year-old Spc. Aaron David Robinson. On July 1st, officers located the suspect in the 4700 block of East Rancier Avenue, Killeen, Texas. However, as officers moved in to arrest him at around 1:29 a.m., Robinson reportedly displayed a weapon and discharged it towards himself. During a recent press conference, it was revealed that a second civilian suspect was in custody at the Killeen County Jail. Local media outlets named her as Cecily Anne Aguilar. She’s charged with tampering with evidence with intent to impair a human corpse, according to online records.

Vanessa's family believe that Robinson is the person who sexually harassed Guillen before she vanished but Army authorities insist that they have found no evidence to prove this. According to Fort Hood CID Special Agent Damon Phelps, Robinson was not Guillen's supervisor, but he did work in a building adjacent to where she worked, 

The Guillen family attorney, Natalie Khawam, alleges that Vanessa was killed with a hammer on base before being dismembered and buried in concrete. Khawam had discussed the case with the Army’s Criminal Investigations Division who told her the that two identified suspects worked together to dispose of the body.

News has also come out that Krysta Martinez, another soldier who was stationed at Fort Hood Army Base, recently died in a car accident. Martinez had filed a sexual harassment complaint against the military base, and she helped the Guillen family during their search for Vanessa. It is reported that she began the #FindVanessaGuillen movement, as she felt that "Vanessa [was] my sister and I will also do anything in my hands for her" despite never meeting Vanessa. While this news is slowly gaining traction, no large American media outlets have yet covered her death. It is believed that the Army may have played a part in her death as the connections between the two women are strangely coincidental.

Both of these women joined the Army in hopes of serving their country, but the system failed to protect them! WE DEMAND THAT FORT HOOD BE SHUT DOWN AND INVESTIGATED. There also needs to be a new system in place that allows women to safely file any harassment complaint without fear of being in danger. Vanessa and Krysta were not the only women to be sexually harassed by their fellow soldiers, as we see more and more cases (ie. LaVena Johnson) and women coming out, detailing their experiences in the U.S. Army/Military. THE SYSTEM NEEDS TO BETTER PROTECT THE WOMEN WHO PROTECT OUR COUNTRY!!!