- The remains of Vanessa Guillen, a 20-year-old soldier that went missing over two months ago, have been identified, an attorney for Guillen's family told Associated Press.
- Human remains were found last week near the Fort Hood Army Base in Texas, where Guillen disappeared from on April 22.
- According to the Army CID, one military suspect killed himself on June 30 after Army investigators tried to make contact with him in relation to Guillen's disappearance.
- According to AP, a criminal complaint released Thursday by the US Attorney's Office for the Western District of Texas says that civilian Cecily Aguilar has been arrested and charged with helping hide Guillen's body.
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The remains of Vanessa Guillen, a 20-year-old soldier that went missing over two months ago, have been identified.
Natalie Khawam, an attorney for Guillen's family, told the Associated Press on Sunday that remains found last week near the Fort Hood Army Base in Texas belong to Private First Class Guillen. Her family also confirmed the news to The Washington Post.
Khawam told AP that Army investigators used DNA from hair and bone samples to identify Guillen's remains.
According to the Army Criminal Investigation Command, Guillen was last seen on the morning of April 22 at the Fort Hood base. Her car keys, room keys, ID, and wallet were found in the armory room where she was working earlier in the day. The Army was offering $25,000 for information regarding her disappearance.
Khawam said in a press release on June 30 that the Army suspected "foul play" in her disappearance.
"We believe her disappearance is related to Vanessa's disclosing to her mother & friends that she was sexually harassed by her sergeants at Ford Hood," Khawam wrote.
On Sunday, Khawam told AP that military sexual harassment is an "epidemic."
"You can't turn a blind eye anymore," she told the outlet.
According to the Army CID, one military suspect killed himself on June 30 after Army investigators tried to make contact with him in relation to Guillen's disappearance. Khawam told the Army Times last week that the man — identified as Spc. Aaron Robinson — used a hammer to attack Guillen causing "her blood to be splashed all over the armory room."
Khawam told Army Times that Robinson enlisted the help of his married girlfriend, Cecily Aguilar, to dismember and bury Guillen's body. Khawam called the murder act "heinous."
According to AP, a criminal complaint released Thursday by the US Attorney's Office for the Western District of Texas says that Aguilar has been arrested and charged with helping hide Guillen's body.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Rep. Jackie Speier of California said in a joint statement on Thursday that they were "deeply saddened" by the developments in the case and called for a "thorough investigation by the Department of Defense Inspector General" into the handling of the case.
"SPC Guillen's disappearance raises deep, troubling concerns about the Army's ability to prevent sexual harassment and assault, respond to criminal acts, and provide justice for victims and their families," the lawmakers wrote.
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