All about the heartbreaking disappearance of Fort Hood soldier Vanessa Guillen

Vanessa was last seen on April 22. The Stars and Stripes newspaper reported that an investigation was opened by Fort Hood officials and an Army Criminal Investigation Command, known as CID, and it revealed that the 20-year-old was last seen at 1 p.m. on April 22 in the parking lot of the Regimental Engineer Squadron Headquarters for the 3rd Cavalry Regiment at the base. Vanessa's car keys, the keys to her room, her identification card, and wallet were later found in the armory room where she was working earlier that day.

The family of the missing Fort Hood soldier began pleading for help after one month with no answers. The 20-year-old US Army soldier's mom, Gloria Guillen, began asking the public to help her find her missing daughter.

The family and members of the community took matters into their own hands and launched their own search parties. More than 60 family members and friends came together at Miller Springs Park in Temple, Texas, to search for the soldier in May. "I am hoping we can cross a big area off the map. It's a huge area we need to search," Vanessa's older sister, Mayra Guillen, told 6News at the gathering at the time. "I feel that she is still with all of us, and that hopefully someone confesses," the sister said. "Or we can somehow find her ourselves before the authorities because its been over a month we need to keep pushing."

She added, "We aren't going to stay quiet. For as long as this goes on we are going to keep it going."

Her mom shared the details of the phone call she had with her daughter in an interview in June. Gloria shared the details of a phone call she said she had with her daughter before her disappearance in which Vanessa claimed she was being sexually harassed by one of the sergeants at the military base. Her mom told her to report him. "Mom, others have reported him but they don't believe them," the mom claims her daughter said during the call, and then asked her not to get involved for fear that she would be retaliated against.

The mom shared a conversation she had with a sergeant about her daughter's disappearance. "A sergeant talked to me anonymously, and I can't say his name because he said 'If you say it, they'll kill me.' He said, 'They kidnapped your daughter inside. And the corruption is horrible and there's tunnels.'" Gloria demanded an investigation to find her daughter.

Human remains were found during a search for the missing soldier on June 30. No confirmation as to the identity of the remains has been made yet, but the identification process was underway. Army Criminal Investigation Division agents arrived at the scene, along with the Texas Rangers, the FBI, and the Bell County Sheriff's Office. Tim Miller, the director and founder of Texas EquuSearch, told CNN at the time that the remains were found in a shallow grave, and suspended search operations as they waited for identification.

The Army announced in June it would increase the reward for any information that could assist investigators in finding the soldier from $15,000 to $25,000. Domingo García, president of the League of United Latin American Citizens, announced an additional $25,000 reward during a press conference on June 16.

"I demand justice. I demand an investigation," she said during a press conference in June. "Everything will be known. I want my daughter alive. My daughter went in alive. If she turns up dead, I will shut down this base. I will move mountains for this base to be closed."

The family launched a social media campaign with the hashtag #FindVanessaGuillen, they had billboards with Vanessa's photos on them, and have also held peaceful protests outside of Fort Hood, with hundreds of people joining in.

Salma also joined in on the search by raising awareness. The actress shared a photo of herself holding a sign with the soldier's photo that she made, asking for Vanessa to be returned, and vowed to share Vanessa's photo on her Instagram Story until she was found. "Bring back Vanessa," the sign reads. "Vanessa, you are not alone we are all with you and we won't rest until you return."

Rapper Baby Bash also used his platform to help bring attention to the case. The Houston rapper helped by spreading information about Vanessa's disappearance, and he pledged to give an additional $5,000 to the reward in exchange for information about the soldier's whereabouts.

Vanessa's disappearance sparked a social media campaign where other soldiers and military personnel shared their own stories of sexual abuse and misconduct while they were serving in the military. Thousands of women shared their stories using the hashtag #IAmVanessaGuillen to shed light on the abuses that women and men go through while they are serving in the military.

During the search for Vanessa, the body of another soldier from the same base was found. Skeletal remains were found near Fort Hood based on an anonymous tip and were identified by the mother of soldier Gregory Wedel-Morales. The mom confirmed to Houston ABC station KTRK that the body found on June 20 in Killeen, Texas, was her son, who was last seen on August 19, 2019.

Mayra Guillen made a passionate plea for justice after human remains were found during a search for her sister, asking for the case to be taken seriously and for claims of assault to be taken seriously. "My sister is NO JOKE. My sister is a HUMAN BEING. And I want justice. My sister did not do this to herself. Someone did it," she said.

A suspect who was being investigated in the case died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound as officers attempted to make contact with him on July 1, just hours after Army CID agents announced they had found human remains while searching for Vanessa. According to local news outlet KJRH, officers with the Killeen Police Department teamed up with US Marshals to locate the suspect, and they found him 10 miles away from Fort Hood after he had fled the base the night before. The police department said that as officers attempted to make contact with the suspect, he pulled out a gun and shot himself. The suspect later died. No official connection has been made between the suspect and the soldier's case, but the family believes the person was involved.

Officials say a civilian suspect was arrested in the soldier's case on July 1. She is reportedly the estranged wife of a former Fort Hood soldier. She is currently being held in custody in the Bell County Jail and will be charged.