Vanessa Guillen Murder: Cecily Aguilar Pleads Guilty for Role in Fort Hood Soldier's Dismemberment Death
Cecily Aguilar, the woman accused of being involved in Fort Hood soldier Vanessa Guillen's murder, pleaded guilty on Tuesday.
According to Crime Online, Aguilar, who allegedly helped Army Specialist Aaron Robinson dismember and dispose of Guillen's body, pleaded guilty to four charges, including one count of accessory to murder after the fact and three counts of making a false statement.
Aguilar's guilty plea allowed her to avoid a trial that was scheduled to start in January. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Texas, Aguilar now faces a maximum possible penalty of 30 years in prison plus three years of supervised release after her prison term and a $1 million fine.
KHOU reported that Guillen's parents and sister, Mayra, were inside the court in Waco, Texas when Aguilar faced the judge. Guillen's family attorney, Natalie Khawam, told CNN that Aguilar's guilty plea was "another step on the long path toward justice for Vanessa, my client, and her courageous family."
Khawam noted that they knew Aguilar was guilty, but "her admission provides some closure for Vanessa's family and friends, which they deserve." The lawyer added that she will never stop fighting for her clients and will continue to seek and demand justice for victims and their families until it is achieved.
Mayra told KHOU they thought Aguilar was "going to keep fighting back." Guillen's sister noted that there had been a lot of mixed emotions, both anger and frustration, and now they are looking forward to the actual sentencing day, which has not been set yet.
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Cecily Aguilar's Alleged Involvement in Vanessa Guillen's Murder
The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) confirmed in May that Aaron Robinson killed fellow soldier Guillen after she saw a photo of Robinson's married lover, Cecily Aguilar, on his phone.
The documents filed by the Texas DPS in court revealed the motive for Guillen's murder. The documents included information from interviews with Aguilar.
The documents noted that when Aguilar was asked why Robinson killed his fellow soldier, she said Guillen noticed the lock screen on Robinson's phone that contained Aguilar's picture.
After seeing her picture on Robinson's phone, Aguilar told investigators that Robinson hit Guillen in the head with a hammer. Aguilar said Robinson was worried about getting in trouble for violating the Army's fraternization rules since she was still married to another soldier. Aguilar and Robinson were having an affair.
As Latin Post reported, Aguilar was previously indicted on 11 counts for her role in helping Robinson dismember and bury the body of Guillen after she was murdered.
Robinson allegedly beat Guillen to death with a hammer inside a Fort Hood armory room in April 2020. Robinson then hid Guillen's body in a Pelican case and dumped the case in the Leon River area.
According to court documents, Robinson needed help disposing of Guillen's body, and this was when he contacted his girlfriend. Aguilar and Robinson allegedly used a machete to dismember the body parts of the deceased Fort Hood soldier.
Aside from destroying Guillen's body, Aguilar's role includes issuing false statements in the federal case. Court documents said the Texas woman corruptly alters, destroys, mutilates, and conceals any record, document, and object with the intent to impair its availability for use in an official proceeding.
Cecily Aguilar was arrested on June 30 last year. On the other hand, Robinson took his own life as police closed in on him during the investigation of Guillen's death.
Vanessa Guillen Murder
Vanessa Guillen went missing for months until some of her remains were found buried in a shallow grave along the Leon River in June 2020. Contractors working on a fence along the Leon River discovered what appeared to be human remains. Guillen's bones, hair, and other remains were reportedly found.
According to reports, Aaron Robinson even attempted to burn Guillen's remains with his girlfriend. Before she was murdered, Guillen reported that she had experienced sexual harassment on two occasions. In both instances, her supervisor failed to report the incidents, according to U.S. Army documents.
Other leaders were also not able to take appropriate action regarding the situation. The Army investigators found no evidence that Robinson harassed her and that there was no evidence that the sexual harassment was related to Guillen's death.
However, investigators uncovered that Vanessa Guillen was sexually harassed by a superior noncommissioned officer in her unit, but the officer determined was not named in the Army report.
READ MORE: Vanessa Guillen Was Sexually Harassed in Fort Hood Before Murder: Army
This article is owned by Latin Post
Written by: Mary Webber
WATCH: Cecily Aguilar Pleads Guilty in Vanessa Guillen's 2020 Death - From KHOU 11