The Army initially offered a $15,000 reward for information leading to her whereabouts, but it has since increased the reward to up to $25,000.
“We are completely committed to finding Vanessa and aggressively going after every single piece of credible information and every lead in this investigation,” Chris Grey, spokesman for Army CID said in a statement released Monday. “We will not stop until we find Vanessa.”
The $25,000 was matched by the prominent Latino civil rights organization, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), on Tuesday.
The search for Guillen, who is of Hispanic descent, has captured the attention of both local and national celebrities.
Houston rapper Baby Bash vowed to add an additional $5,000 to the reward in a Facebook post last week. And actress Salma Hayek pledged to put Guillen’s photo on her Instagram stories every day until she is found.
Allegations of sexual harassment
“We have to take a deep dive on this case to find Vanessa but to get to the bottom of anything that may be going on at Fort Hood,” Texas Rep. Sylvia Garcia said in Tuesday’s news conference. “These allegations of sexual assault, that is not the first time we hear of allegations of sexual assault in the armed services.”
The Army CID, however, said it has found “no credible information or report” that Guillen was sexually assaulted or that her case is connected to the disappearance of Gregory Wedel-Morales, another soldier who went missing last year while driving his car in Killeen, Texas.
Last seen wearing a black t-shirt
Guillen, a private first class, was last seen wearing a black t-shirt and purple fitness-type pants, according to the Army CID. Her car keys, room key, identification card and wallet were later found in the armory room where she was working earlier that day.
Guillen is described as 5 feet 2 inches, 126 pounds with black hair and brown eyes, according to the Army CID statement.
Officials ask that anyone with information regarding her whereabouts call the Army CID special agents or military police.
Source : Nbcnewyork