Amanda Gonzales.Photo: FBI
A Florida man has been arrested and charged in connection to the murder of a pregnant soldier at a former U.S. Army base in Germany 21 years ago, according to the Department of Justice.
On Tuesday, Shannon L. Wilkerson, 42, was arrested in the Northern District of Florida in connection with the murder of U.S. Army Pfc. Amanda Gonzales, 19,the Department of Justice said in a statement.
Wilkerson is charged with one count of first-degree murder in Gonzales' Nov. 3, 2001, slaying at Fliergerhorst Kaserne, a U.S. Army base in Hanau, Germany.
Wilkerson was a member of the Armed Forces at the time of the slaying but was later discharged from the Army, according to the DOJ statement.
He was discharged from active duty in 2004 and from the Army Reserve in 2007, according to a grand jury indictment,Stars and Stripesreports.
Gonzales was 19 years old and four months pregnant when she was killed, the FBI said in a previous release.
She was on her first assignment in the Army and was assigned to Headquarters Supply Company, 127th Aviation Support Battalion as a cook at the time of her death,according to a 2008 statement from the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command.
Her body was found on the floor of her third-floor barracks room on Nov. 5, 2001, when she failed to show up for work.
Gonzales had only been in Germany for eight months when she was killed, the U.S. Army CID said.
In 2008, CID wrote in the statement that it was offering a $100,000 reward to anyone with information leading to the apprehension and conviction of the person or persons responsible for her death.
Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up forPEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletterfor breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.
“Increasing the reward to $100,000 is a testament to the determination we have in solving this case and bringing the person or persons responsible to justice,” CID spokesman Chris Grey said in 2008.
The reward was increased to $125,000 in 2011.
“We are confident that someone out there knows something about the untimely death of this Soldier and her unborn child, and we are not giving up. We strongly encourage anyone with information to contact us immediately.”
Excited to Become a New Mom
“At the time of her murder, Amanda was pregnant and looking forward to sharing her life and love with her daughter, who would have been born on March 26, 2002,” it said.
Her father told Stars and Stripes in 2008 that he had spent years hoping for answers in her case.
“It’s frustrating as hell,” Santos Gonzales told Stars and Stripes in 2008. “That was my first daughter, my only daughter.
“I know she had been in a struggle,” he said. “I want some answers and maybe get a little closure.”
For Gonzales' mother, Gloria Bates, the pain of her loss is immeasurable.
“They took away my daughter and first grandchild,” Bates told Stars and Stripes in 2008.
“But I’ve actually forgiven [whoever killed her daughter]. I’ve found it in my heart.”
Wilkerson pleaded not guilty at a hearing Thursday, according to a court filing, Stars and Stripes reports.
If convicted, Wilkerson faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
The FBI is investigating the case.
It is unclear whether Wilkerson has retained an attorney who can speak on his behalf.
source: people.com
