It's been three years since the high-profile disappearance and murder of 20-year-old Fort Cavazos soldier Vanessa Guillen. This week, family, friends and attorneys are preparing for the sentencing hearing in Waco for the woman who helped dispose of her body.
This comes on the heels of an executive order strengthening how our military handles assault allegations. Guillen’s sister, Mayra Guillen, spoke to NBC 5 ahead of next week’s hearing.
“She was always a very joyful person. She found joy to everything,” said Mayra Guillen. “She was the one to laugh at everything.”
Mayra Guillen says her sister, Vanessa, was always the lighthearted one, while she took things more seriously. Now, she hopes to start enjoying life a little more.
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“Now I want to see things differently. I want to live for both her and myself,” she said. “And I know she's proud to see everything that's been accomplished.”
She's been fighting for her sister since April 2020, when Vanessa Guillen, a soldier at Fort Hood, now called Fort Cavazos, went missing from the post. Two months later, her body was found beaten, dismembered, and burned.
Authorities said Guillen died at the hands of fellow soldier Aaron Robinson and his girlfriend, Cicely Aguilar, who helped dispose of the body. Robinson took his own life before being taken into police custody.
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Guillen's family said she was sexually harassed before the murder. Her case sparked outrage and protests for change in the military's handling of gender-based crimes.
Mayra Guillen acknowledged activists from across the state who helped. Many were from the Dallas-Fort Worth area. She thanked those who rallied and marched to keep Vanessa's name at the forefront and push for accountability.
“If people didn't care, I find it hard to believe we would've gotten to where we are now,” she said.
Just days ago, President Joe Biden signed an executive order strengthening how the military handles sexual assault. Mayra received a call from the White House; confirmation that her work on the Vanessa Guillen Bill wasn't in vain.
She said she considered it a victory ahead of what's sure to be an emotional hearing Monday when they'll face the other person in connection to Vanessa’s death, Cecily Aguilar.
“It's scary. We're all on edge about what we're going to say that day, how we're going to say it,” she said.
A rally and march will follow the hearing. Mayra said the work for others like Vanessa will continue.
“There's always going to be away to give back and I hope one day I can do that,” she said.
Aguilar pleaded guilty to four charges in Guillen's case - including accessory to murder after the fact.
