Its possible. Later the same day, at 8:30 p.m., Aaron Robinsons girlfriend, Cecily Aguilar, changed her story and told Army investigators that Robinson had confessed to her that he killed Guillen in the arms room, beating her to death with a hammer. The area, east of Killeen, was built on 109,000 acres of high bluffs, ridges, sharp slopes, and mesa-like hills covered with mesquite and chaparral. (The Boley case remains unsolved.) It was ruled a suicide until her father noticed her broken nose, black eye, loose teeth, and burns on her genitals. But at Fort Hood, it sometimes seemed like "mission first, equipment second," he said, highlighting the paradox of the military that in word puts the well-being of soldiers first but in deed must, by design, favor combat readiness over all else. = Link to a nongovernmental site. His wife, Christal, was denied her husbands mobile phone, the final investigation report, and even his corpse, until Texas Congressman Ron Wright stepped in on that front. Frantic, she called around, to no avail. [2] Had anyone helped Robinson clean up Guillens murder in those 40 minutes? (Fort Hood) A soldier in the 1st Cavalry Division was found dead Saturday in his company area, according to a statement from. On May 11, however, Fernandes reported to Fort Hood abusive sexual contact from a staff sergeant, whom he alleged groped him in a supply room, according to the redacted military investigation report. They checked into a nearby hotel and returned at 8 a.m. the next day. The Army's own investigation found "major flaws" at Fort Hood, leading to the firing or suspending of 14 officials. Two days after Staff Sergeant Anthony Lovell, 40, disappeared in 2017, his body was found, eyes pecked clean, face split in half, in a creek off Killeen's seedy main corridor called Rancier, the same street where Specialist Freddy Delacruz, 23, was shot and killed last March. May Jeong has written an in-depth analysis of the rash of unexplained deaths at Fort Hood. (According to Killeen police, no such vests were found at the scene of the crash. By. The base might have continued to devour its soldiers had it not been for a missing soldiers family whose rage, love, and devotion would attract the attention of the media, celebrities, and later the White House, sparking congressional and military investigations. Had one of them stood in for Guillen during roll call? Joshua Diamond, 35, of Plymouth, Massachusetts, and Pfc. Maj. Gen. Scott Efflandt. It installed 35 firing ranges, 18 chapels, three bowling alleys, and 1,384 barracks that would house, at its peak, 95,000 soldiers, the most densely populated military base, at a cost of $35 million. That American imperialism is imploding, and the blast force radiates inward. My caution wasn't entirely unfounded. The 20-year-old US Army soldier died in a Fort Hood, Texas,. The rolling, semi-arid terrain is ideal for multifaceted training and testing of military units and troops. Yet instead of being taken into custody, Robinson was placed in a conference room on base, initially, it was said, for committing adultery, which is against the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Anthony Nevelle Peak Jr. Hogan, 19, and Peak Jr., 21, were both killed in a. A small minority, which bikers call "one percent" groups, and which the Department of Justice calls by the regrettable acronym OMG, or outlaw motorcycle gangs, were the people Wedel-Morales had been hanging around with. They pointed glumly to past cases, some of which there were public records for and others I could find no traces of in the official files. Don't they care as to what happened to Elder Fernandes? Even then, it was she who had to scare up the $3,500 in bail money, and after Fort Hood sent two officers to pick up Casteel, officials refused to share information with Rodriguez. Vanessa Guilln, who was missing for about two months before her remains were found. Atop these sedimentary layers of desecration, displacement, and disorientation, the War Department set out to build a base that would go on to serve as a footnote to nearly every war in modern memoryKorea, Vietnam, Bosnia, Iraq, and Afghanistan, but also Grenada, Panama, and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Five were murdered. (The person who called in with the tip declined to collect the reward. As many as 28 Fort Hood soldiers died in 2020, including in multiple homicides, suicides and other accidents. (He was found a day later.) (There was also literal toxicity on base in that some of the mold-infested barracks where soldiers lived were technically condemned, according to Maureen Elliott, a military spouse and a housing advocate.). When his parents rushed to the hospital, they saw that Chee, lying unconscious, had bruises and scrapes on his chin and on both sides of his face. According to officials, the deaths include seven off-duty accidents; seven suicides; one combat-related death; four homicides, one of which was on the base; two of natural causes; one that was. By then Wedel-Morales had grown distant from his family in Oklahoma, who had not been told of the marriage. SHARE. A few days later, so did 21-year-old Specialist Trey Ring. What happened on that base and in the Army to cause this person who is normally very [kind] and responsive to all of a sudden leave and shut down? Army investigating after soldier, 26, found dead in latest in string of unexplained deaths at Fort Hood barracks Fort Hood officials have not released the cause of death for Maxwell. I will tell you everything. Fernandes was dropped off at his friends house the next day, August 17, never to be seen again. Fernandes wouldnt share much, nothing about what had caused him to be hospitalized, and said that he was using an insecure base hospital line. A young soldier found dead at Fort Hood has been identified, but his cause of death remains hidden. The new family, like more than 70 percent of all Fort Hood service members, lived off post, but after two dead bodies were found on their street, they moved into base housing. American military bases, once established, seldom shutter, and Fort Hood, which started operating during World War II, has remained open for business, its 218,000 acres spreading across two counties in central Texas near an otherwise unremarkable town called Killeen. Bill to attend technical school in Houston to work on wind turbines or oil rigs off the coast of Louisiana. A group of soldiers, including Robinson, greeted them. There she encountered Specialist Aaron Robinson, also 20 years old but a rank above. Fernandes wouldn't share much, nothing about what had caused him to be hospitalized, and said that he was using an insecure base hospital line. Vanessa Guillen and a number of other soldiers at Fort Hood sparked outrage across the country, leading to an independent review of the command climate and culture on the military post. (Marine Lance Corporal Riley Schultzs death on March 15, 2019, at Camp Pendleton in San Diego County, was also ruled a suicide, despite his hyoid being broken. Is it possible Elder killed himself? Lenz was found dead at Fort Hood on Feb. 1. Boots and hat at Vanessa Guillens memorial, Killeen TX, Jeffrey Epsteins Decades-Long Relationship. Guillen confessed that she was being harassed by another soldier. (Fort Hood refused all official interview requests for this story, citing ongoing investigations. In death, she is no longer a daughter or a sister or a partner. There were no Black residents in town until the early 1950s. They married in May 2017, and he took her name with hyphenation. That September, Wedel-Morales, who was from rural Oklahoma, was due to be honorably discharged from the military. The soldiers said that Guillens belongings had been found in the arms room, but otherwise she had left no trace. On April 29, it was Private Joshua Barnwell, 19. Fort Worth (817) 293-8477 Laurel Land Funeral Home and Cemetery 7100 Crowley Road, Fort Worth . Such moral injury deteriorates social trust, which is then "replaced by the settled expectancy of harm, exploitation, and humiliation from others," resulting in despair and violence to self and to others. We believe that Every Life has a Story which should be told and preserved. The 20-year-old small arms specialist, then a private first class, was supposed to be off that day, so she showed up in civilian clothesblack tee, purple leggings, and a fanny pack. Visit this link to create a free obituary then read the advantages of creating an obituary on Echovita and either click Start now or Create an obituary for your loved to begin. A few days later, so did 21-year-old Specialist Trey Ring. The coming months brought the suicides of Staff Sergeant Richard Harrington, 45, and then Specialist James Green, 23. Just before noon, Guillen left her keys, Army ID, and bank cards in one arms room and entered another adjacent arms room, separated by a hallway. Through social media posts, court records, and other primary sources, author Kathleen Hale forensically reconstructs their lives before the crime, and the night they were killed. "She doesn't belong to the Army anymore," AnaLuisa Tapia, a local organizer, told me. He had also gotten married without telling his family, been evicted from his apartment, and stopped showing up to work. The shakeup comes after after a series of suspicious deaths and disappearances that have plagued Fort Hood. Site Gregory Wedel-Morales' remains were found in Killeen, Texas. They returned several days later to pour concrete over the remains. Yes, simply click Add a photo located underneath the main photo of the obituary then upload the photos/videos you wish to share. He had messaged his sister beforehand to tell her something felt off. III Corps Policies and Regulations . Rosecrans, shot four times, was found three miles from his vehicle. I asked him directly if he wasnt willing to speak because of position and he signaled yes, and he said, Id rather tell you in person. , Several days later, Rodriguez learned that Casteel had been committed to a hospital on base. Many complained specifically of being made to cut grass to ready for such official visits. It rained that night, and the drive, which should have taken three hours, was slow going. But advocates for. A unique and lasting tribute for a loved one. Texas Death Records, 1890-1976 includes scanned copies of the death certificates Texas Death Records, 1977-1986 includes digitized copies of the death certificates; not yet complete. Death Notices Famous Deaths Search Wednesday, March 01, 2023 Audrie Talmadge "A.T." Powell 10 hrs ago Services for Audrie Talmadge "A.T." Powell, 78, will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday at Salado. Staff Sergeant Devin Schuette was found dead in his pickup truck, fitted with a hose running from the exhaust pipe to the cabin, in January 2016. The stories are gruesome, then heartbreaking, then beyond belief. Stump was going 82 mph in a 30-mph zone, the investigation report said, and had hit a tree on a mound. Fernandes had just been stationed at Fort Hood in January. On March 5, 2020, Destanie Sawyer's five-year-old daughter found her father, Specialist Christopher Sawyer, 29, after he had shot himself dead in the bedroom of their Fort Hood housing. Fort Hood officials confirmed Monday that Martinez and Mosley were assigned to the 1st Cavalry Division. Chee, like Yazzie, was a member of the Ramah Navajo Indian Reservation community, and was new to the base. ), Wedel-Morales's death was not the first from the base that may have involved bike gangs. Staff Sergeant Devin Schuette was found dead in his pickup truck, fitted with a hose running from the exhaust pipe to the cabin, in January 2016. Chee, like Yazzie, was a member of the Ramah Navajo Indian Reservation community, and was new to the base. But when Kim called the police, they dismissed her, telling Kim that her son probably just took off. (Killeen Police stated they have no knowledge of anyone declining to investigate.) A few hours later, Robinson, who had mostly been playing video games, escaped Fort Hood by car. The numbers are distressing. On most nights, I had nightmares. Hazel Buck Blackwell, whose family lost their farm, homestead, barns, orchards, and adjoining land when the base took over, said the closest thing might be the unexpected death of someone you loved very much. It was a heartrending, searing experience, central Texas historian GraDelle Duncan said, leaving lifetime marks on all, and actually killing some from the psychic devastation that followed. (Facebook) Two weeks later, Delacruz . Fernandes was dropped off at his friends house the next day, never to be seen again. Two days after Staff Sergeant Anthony Lovell, 40, disappeared in 2017, his body was found, eyes pecked clean, face split in half, in a creek off Killeens seedy main corridor called Rancier, the same street where Specialist Freddy Delacruz, 23, was shot and killed last March. But when Kim called the police, they dismissed her, telling Kim that her son probably just "took off." And being mission-ready, the perpetual vigilance it requires, ensures a kind of endless possibility of war, which in turn justifies the $740 billion annual defense budget. Fort Hood also stated that it had completed an exhaustive search for Fernandes, and that it had interviewed all relevant parties, including the family. By then, the Army, it seemed, had stopped providing Wedel-Morales with a sense of purpose, and he had turned to alternate sources of meaning, namely car and motorcycle clubs, and life beyond the base. Here are some of the tragic deaths that have plagued the base in recent months: Pvt. Within days of arriving at Fort Hood, Chees clothes were stolen. On August 28, Chee was called into a training run. Today, Reform Austin is attempting to put the entire chain of events into a concise timeline for our readers. In 2009, Nidal Hasan was an Army major when he killed 13 people and wounded more than 30 others in a mass shooting at Fort Hood, Texas. I guess my point is, Rodriguez told me, if everything was fine, the way Fort Hood officials would lead us to believe, then why would this soldier, out of character, leave base without permission, and [why] did he not feel comfortable enough to call his captain or anyone on that base once he was arrested for speeding? That most soldiers enlist when they are still teenagers, their yet-unformed minds taught to kill. Specialist Justen Ogdens death in July 2017 was ruled a suicide, but the suicide note Fort Hood produced as evidence did not match his handwriting, according to his mother, Toni. "For nothing.". Their minds both turned to Vanessa, whose hourly texts to family members had gone silent. Guilln's death triggered a social media movement of former and current military service people speaking out about sexual assault and harassment on the base. The 20-year-old small arms specialist, then a private first class, was supposed to be off that day, so she showed up in civilian clothesblack tee, purple leggings, and a fanny pack. Since being stationed at Fort Hood in November 2016, Wedel-Morales had frequented the Dollhouse, a strip club not far from where his remains would eventually be found. On March 5, 2020, Destanie Sawyers five-year-old daughter found her father, Specialist Christopher Sawyer, 29, after he had shot himself dead in the bedroom of their Fort Hood housing. After 8 p.m., Guillen's sister Mayra called the base. Wedel-Morales was thrilled to become a father. Guillens youngest sister, Lupe, made me promise to stay at the Marriott, a hotel she considered safer than the rest. I've even lost myself." During the run, Chee, who had no preexisting health conditions, collapsed. On August 17, Sergeant Elder Fernandes, 23, disappeared. Nov. 30, 2022. Fort Hood had refused to list him as missing, and it was only after his then fiance, Paradise Rodriguez, posted a video on Facebook that an officer at the parish jail saw it and got into contact. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our. The brutal murders of four Idaho college students shocked millions. Most of the groups were aboveboard, even as they were ruled by certain strictures for meeting attendance, dress code, and how to appropriately signal respect. Subscribers have complete access to the archive. At first blush, such violence at a base that calls itself the Great Place may seem extraordinary, inexplicable even. Soon after, the Temple police, who led the investigation, ruled Fernandess death a suicide. Spc.