Domingo García, president of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), said he urges Latinas not to join the US military after the disappearance of Vanessa Guillén, a US soldier stationed in Texas who disappeared in April.
Guillén, a 20-year-old from Houston, was stationed in Fort Hood, Texas, when she disappeared. Her family and her lawyer said the army dragged on the investigation, which only resulted in the suspect’s arrest this week.
“We are asking all women, especially Latinas or their families: Do not join the military until we are confident that you will be protected and cared for when you serve our country,” Garcia said in a statement. “And right now you just don’t think the army is capable of doing it because of what happened to Vanessa Guillén.”
Before the two suspects were found, the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command (CID) and LULAC pledged $ 25,000 to obtain information on the suspects’ whereabouts.
This week, human remains that the Guillén family believes to be theirs were found near the Leon River in Bell County, Texas.
Family lawyer Natalie Khawam told reporters that Guillén was killed with a hammer before his alleged assailant, Aaron David Robinson, and his girlfriend, Cecily Anne Aguilar, attempted to burn her body before dismembering it with a machete.
Robinson died of suicide days ago after being confronted by police in Killeen, Texas, according to CID, which is leading the investigation. Aguilar is in custody and charged with second degree forgery / forgery of physical evidence.
“There are cameras everywhere, so it’s really impossible for her to disappear there from the largest military base in the United States without anyone knowing or discovering it,” Garcia said.
Khawam said Guillén intended to file a harassment complaint against Robinson before his death. Those claims sparked the hashtag #IamVanessaGuillen on social media, which many current and former soldiers have used to share their experiences of sexual harassment and assault on military installations.
A CID spokesman said at the agency’s press conference that “there was no credible information” that Guillén had suffered sexual harassment. His family is requesting an investigation by Congress.
Guillén’s family and several House lawmakers have called for an investigation by Congress into his disappearance.
.
