Fort Hood solider Vanessa Guillen, 20, has been missing since April
The remains found Tuesday and Wednesday in the search for missing Fort Hood soldier Vanessa Guillen were hidden under concrete, investigators revealed.
Texas Equusearch’s Tim Miller said that attempts had been made to keep the body well-concealed and it was discovered only after a man working in the area noticed a foul smell.
‘It appears he buried her, put lime on her, mixed up concrete, put that over her, put dirt over her, rocks and stuff,’ Miller told KHOU.
The investigation found its first piece of evidence last week which led them to believe that Guillen may be close by.
On Wednesday, a picture of the site was revealed for the first time as Miller announced they found the lid to a Pelican storage case which prompted them to continue the search in the area.
A witness had previously said they saw a case being loaded into a car at around 8.30pm close to the time that Guillen first disappeared in April.
The remains have not yet been confirmed as the missing soldier.
Fort Hood is set to hold a press conference on Thursday afternoon to reveal more information.
The first image of the site where evidence was found was released on Wednesday. Remains were found nearby on Tuesday and Wednesday but it has not been confirms as Guillen
The search had continued in this area along the Leon River about 20 miles from the Fort Hood base after the first evidence connected with Guillen’s disappearance was found last week
The discovery was made as the Army announced they were promoting Guillen despite her missing status.
She was promoted to Specialist on Monday.
The soldier’s family held an emotional press conference Wednesday in which Guillen’s sister Mayra revealed she met the suspect in her disappearance, who killed himself when approached by police early Wednesday morning.
‘When I first went up to that base, that subject, I met him not knowing that he had something to do with it. I felt something was telling me that he did something. He still had the nerve that same day to laugh in my face and apparently now he kills himself,’ she said.
‘Why? I don’t know, but whoever is responsible has to pay.’
The investigation continues after remains were found at this site Tuesday and Wednesday
A case lid had been found at the site last week which prompted the search to continue
Guillen’s sister Mayra (pictured speaking), told reporters in DC she met the suspect who killed himself when she went to the Fort Hood base and that he laughed in her face
The family added that they believe the suspect to be the person who sexually harassed Guillen before she vanished.
The suspect in question died Wednesday from a self-inflicted gunshot after police attempted to bring him in.
He is being described as a ‘junior soldier who fled his post’ but he has not yet been identified.
Police found him walking six miles from Fort Hood but when they approached he pulled out a gun and shot himself, they report.
A second suspect is in custody, believed to be a civilian and the estranged wife of a former Fort Hood soldier. She has also not yet been identified.
It is not known if there is a connection between the two suspects and the Army has said it will hold back on releasing information as Guillen’s family call for the whole base to be closed down and investigated.
The Army has defended its decision not to release information saying that ‘doing so can seriously jeopardize the charging and successful prosecution of individuals’.
‘We have made significant progress in this tragic situation and are doing everything possible to get to the truth,’ they added in a statement to ABC Houston.
Remains were found for the second day in a row Wednesday as the search for Guillen continued along the Leon River about 20 miles from the Fort Hood base.
Guillen’s family has said they believe their loved one is dead and that the serviceman who killed her is the same individual who turned a gun on himself when police tried to make contact with him early Wednesday morning.
‘We have a dead person because of sexual harassment,’ the family’s attorney Natalie Kahwam said at the start of the press conference.
Guillen was last seen at the Fort Hood Army Base in Killeen, Texas, on April 22 wearing a black t-shirt, light purple leggings and black Nike sneakers.
Her car keys, barracks room key, identification card and wallet were later found in the armory room where she was working earlier in the day.
Volunteer group Texas EquuSearch came across the remains in an undisclosed area in Coryell County, not too far from the site where the remains of missing soldier Gregory Wedel-Morales were found on June 19.
Morales, who was also known as Gregory Wedel, was last seen on August 19, 2019 driving his personal vehicle outside of Fort Hood.
He was to be discharged within days after his disappearance, the Army said.
A $25,000 reward is being offered for information about his death. Morales disappeared about eight months before Guillen vanished from the base and they are not thought to be linked.
Two suspects were identified in Guillen’s case Tuesday as one, a soldier at Fort hood base, attempted to flee.
According to a statement from the Killeen Police Department, authorities located the suspect in the 4700 block of East Rancier Avenue around 1.29am Wednesday morning.
According to a statement from the Killeen Police Department, authorities located the suspect in the 4700 block of East Rancier Avenue (area pictured) around 1.29am Wednesday morning
Fort Hood soldier Vanessa Guillen’s family has said they believe their loved one, pictured, is dead and that the serviceman who killed her is the same individual who turned a gun on himself when police tried to make contact with him early Wednesday morning
Vanessa Guillen, pictured, was last seen at the Fort Hood Army Base in Killeen, Texas, on April 22 wearing a black t-shirt, light purple leggings and black Nike sneakers
‘As officers attempted to make contact with the suspect, the suspect displayed a weapon and discharged it towards himself,’ police said in the statement.
Authorities said the suspect died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the scene.
The second civilian suspect was arrested by Texas Rangers. She is currently being held at the Bell County Jail awaiting charges by civilian authorities.
Guillen’s family says that she had accused an unnamed sergeant of sexually harassing her and claimed she felt unsafe before she disappeared.
Khawam said Guillen once claimed that a superior walked in on her showering and another verbally assaulted her with vulgar remarks in Spanish.
Last week the Fort Hood Army base launched an investigation into Guillen’s allegations that a sergeant sexually harassed her.