Killeen woman gets 30-year sentence in Vanessa Guillen case

Waco - On August 14, a Killeen woman received a 30-year prison sentence in a federal court in Waco, Texas, for her role in the murder of U.S. Army Specialist Vanessa Guillen, Dallas Metro News reported.

Court documents reveal that 25-year-old Cecily Aguilar aided Army Specialist Aaron Robinson in corruptly altering, destroying, mutilating, and concealing evidence, specifically the remains of Vanessa Guillen, with the intention of shielding Robinson from potential criminal charges and prosecution.

In addition, Aguilar tampered with and deleted information found in Robinson's Google account. During the inquiry into Vanessa Guillen's disappearance, Aguilar provided four materially false statements to federal investigators.

Aguilar admitted her guilt on November 29, 2022, pleading guilty to one count of accessory to murder after the fact and three counts of making false statements or representations.

“Our hope is that today’s sentence brings a sense of relief and justice to the Guillen family, who have endured such pain throughout these past few years,” said U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas. “Ms. Aguilar’s actions were indefensible, and she will now face the maximum penalty for the choices she made. I’m grateful for our law enforcement partners who worked tirelessly on this case, as their dedication was essential in bringing this defendant to justice.”

The case was investigated by a coalition of agencies, including the FBI; U.S. Marshals Service; Texas Rangers; Bell County Sheriff’s Office; Killeen Police Department; Texas Parks and Wildlife; U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division; and the University of North Texas Center for Human Identification Forensic Anthropology Unit.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark Frazier and Greg Gloff were responsible for prosecuting the case.

Credit: Dallas Metro News, Department of Justice