Private First Class Vanessa Guillen, who had been stationed in Fort Hood, Texas, had been missing since April 22. Fort Hood Army officials, along with friends and family who were desperate for answers, had been asking members of the public for help finding the missing soldier for months to no avail. Then, just days ago on June 30, human remains were found near the Leon River in Bell County, Texas. Though those remains have not officially been identified, the family believes they are Vanessa's.
But now, there's a shocking new development in the case. According to the Killeen Police Department, one of the suspects in her disappearance — also an active-duty soldier — shot and killed himself when police approached him. Vanessa had reportedly claimed a sergeant had been sexually harassing her. So her disappearance was even more worrisome to her family, who suspected foul play.
The Army has not yet released the name of the suspect who died by suicide, though Vanessa's sister says she had previously met him and suspected something was wrong.
Days ago, human remains believed to be Vanessa's were found. Reporter Cole Johnson posted on Twitter that "partial human remains" had been uncovered. It soon became clear that authorities and Vanessa's family were convinced they were hers, leaving even more questions about what had happened.
Police had several suspects in mind. Then, in a new twist of events, as officers were closing in on one of the suspects, the man shot and killed himself in front of the police. "Special Agents … were attempting to locate the junior Soldier from Fort Hood who fled the post late yesterday," the Army said in the statement. "While law enforcement agencies attempted to make contact with the suspect, the suspect reportedly displayed a weapon and took his own life."
We don't know a lot more about the soldier or the events that took place before he killed himself. The statement continued, "The name of the Soldier will not be released at this time pending the notification of next of kin." However, authorities also arrested another suspect, who was identified only as "the estranged wife of a former Fort Hood Soldier."
There are so many more questions surrounding the case. Especially because there may have been sexual assault or harassment occurring, prior to Vanessa's disappearance. The case began getting national attention when family speculated that the victim's disappearance might have been part of a cover-up.
Actress Salma Hayek even got involved with trying to direct attention toward the case. She shared a photo of Vanessa on Instagram. Along with it, she wrote that Vanessa's mother, Gloria, said that her daughter "had complained to her about a sergeant sexually harassing her."
There is a lot more to be uncovered in the case. The medical examiner is conducting an autopsy to identify the remains. Hopefully, that will give authorities some more clues into what really happened to Vanessa and why, but some members of Vanessa's family felt they knew something was wrong to begin with. The victim's sister said she met the suspect who killed himself on the first day of looking for Vanessa. "They lied to us since day one. When I first went up to that base, that subject, I met him, not knowing that he had something to do with it," she said. "I felt … something was telling me that he did something. And I wasn't wrong."
Obviously, Vanessa's family is deeply grieving. But there are also some claims that the Army may have mishandled the case or did not do enough to protect Vanessa. On Wednesday, Vanessa's family attorney, Natalie Khawam, criticized the US Army. "We lost a life. We lost a beautiful young soldier," she said in a press conference. "Enough is enough."
Hopefully, there will be answers for Vanessa's family soon enough. According to an Army press release, Col. Ralph Overland appointed a team to conduct the sexual harassment investigation. "I opened an investigation concerning the information provided by the Guillen family that Pfc. Vanessa Guillen was harassed prior to her disappearance," the statement quotes Overland as saying. "I take allegations of sexual harassment very seriously and we are conducting a thorough investigation."
Still, there are some who feel this tragedy could have been prevented. Vanessa's family had been putting out calls on social media, saying they felt something wasn't right, especially after her complaints about harassment. Not to mention, sexual misconduct in the military is nothing new — thousands of cases are reported each year.
Chances are, the remains do belong to Vanessa. Sources say her family has accepted that they are. But we won't know for sure until the autopsy reports come back. Hopefully, authorities will continue their investigations and thoroughly examine what happened in the case so that the victim's family can get justice.
Perhaps the horrific incident will also lead the US Army to seriously examine sexual assault and harassment in the military and implement real and lasting change that protects both men and women serving our country.
