Sister of slain Texas soldier Vanessa Guillen: Evidence in the case is 'sketchy'
Fox Nation host Nancy Grace interviews Mayra Guillen regarding her sister's alleged sexual harassment and murder in “A Fort Hood Investigation with Nancy Grace: Part 1.”
Fourteen officers and enlisted soldiers at Fort Hood were fired or suspended Tuesday after an independent investigation revealed a toxic culture that fueled sexual harassment and failed to protect female soldiers from harm.
The actions, taken by Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy, come in the aftermath of a year that saw 25 soldiers assigned to Fort Hood die due to suicide, homicide or accidents, including the bludgeoning death of Spc. Vanessa Guillen, who was missing for close to two months before her remains were found.
14 SOLDIERS FIRED, SUSPENDED FROM FORT HOOD
Guillen's alleged killer, Spc. Aaron Robinson, who authorities believe sexually assaulted her before her death, committed suicide shortly afterward.
But Guillen's family told Fox Nation host Nancy Grace earlier this year that they don't believe their sister was killed at Fort Hood, and that they “strongly” believe that “more people” are responsible for her death and the alleged cover-up.
Guillen's sister Mayra made the comments in Fox Nation’s “A Fort Hood Investigation with Nancy Grace: Part 1,” which is currently available for viewing. Speaking on “America’s Newsroom” in July, the Guillen family attorney, Natalie Khawam, also alleged that there are “cover-ups” taking place at the Army post.
Guillen's family, which has been calling on Congress to launch an investigation for months, claims that she experienced sexual harassment by Robinson before she was killed, but never reported it.
Federal prosecutors believe Cecily Aguilar of Killeen, the town adjacent to Fort Hood, helped Robinson dispose of Guillen's body in a wooded area near the Leon River, several miles from the sprawling military installation.
Robinson bludgeoned Guillen with a hammer and later dismembered her, authorities said.
“I believe she was taken unconscious,” Mayra Guillen told Grace.
“There's no telling where he [Robinson] might have went, or with who, or I don't know if it was just him and Aguilar or if there's more people to this, which I strongly believe there is.”
FORT HOOD SOLDIER'S DEATH MARKS 28TH AT THE BASE THIS YEAR
Aguilar pleaded not guilty to charges for her alleged role in the crime in July. Khawam said Aguilar tried deleting her Google accounts and fleeing the country.
President Trump met with the Guillen family in July, on the day before the #IAmVanessaGuillen Bill was presented to Congress. The bill would create a third party where military members could report sexual assault and harassment.
“I'm just stunned that after all this, even meeting with the president, Fort Hood is still lying and stonewalling Vanessa's family,” Grace told Khawam.
Grace then asked, “Have any witnesses come forward to testify about what happened to Vanessa?”
“One of the generals said that they did an investigation with all the soldiers on the base and found that there was no sexual harassment,” Khawam said, even though Guillen’s colleagues told “the chief that interviewed them about the sexual harassment and about her disclosing it to them and about what they saw.”
Khawam then said that they told him “what happened” and “wrote it down for him” upon his request.
“And then what happens? We watched TV, [a] press conference, and he said that nothing was ever substantiated, no allegations of sexual harassment,” Khawam continued. “I thought I was going to fall over when I heard this from this soldier.”
She went on to say that “they are just the most repulsive, vile command I've ever seen in my life and I love the military and I love our troops and I love them.”
“These guys just kept on lying, lying about Vanessa's whereabouts, lying about what their investigation was, lying about the people that they interviewed that disclosed to him that she was being sexually harassed and continued to lie to keep their jobs,” Khawam told Grace.
“I thought I'd seen it all until I went to Fort Hood.”
More than two dozen other soldiers from Fort Hood have died this year. Guillen's death sparked the basis of the independent review, which officials say uncovered "a deficient climate at Fort Hood, including ineffective implementation of the Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention (SHARP) program that resulted in a pervasive lack of confidence, fear of retaliation, and significant underreporting of cases, particularly within the enlisted ranks."
A Fort Hood spokesperson did not immediately respond to Fox News' request for comment.
The Army announced a leadership change, appointing Maj. Gen. John B. Richardson IV as Fort Hood's new acting senior commander.
The Army also announced that Gen. John Murray, commanding general of Army Futures Command, will lead a comprehensive investigation into every level of leadership at the base.
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Fox News’ Yael Halon, Vandana Rambaran, Lucas Tomlinson, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
