A former soldier convicted of murdering a pregnant soldier in Germany more than 20 years ago will now spend decades in prison.
Shannon Wilkerson, 44, was sentenced Thursday to 30 years in prison for the 2001 murder of Amanda Gonzales, a 19-year-old pregnant soldier, according to a Justice Department release. Wilkerson strangled Gonzales to death Nov. 3, 2001, in Gonzales’ barracks room in Fliegerhorst Kaserne, a former U.S. Army base in Hanau, Germany, but evaded justice for more than two decades until he was convicted May 7 of second-degree murder.
Evidence introduced during the trial indicated that Wilkerson committed the murder after discovering Gonzales was pregnant with his child, according to the Justice Department. Wilkerson was allegedly worried the unexpected child would ruin his military career and sabotage his marriage to another soldier on base.
“While nothing we can do will reunite Amanda with her family, we hope today’s sentencing brings some measure of closure and comfort to Amanda’s loved ones,” Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, said in a release.
The FBI New York and Jacksonville Field Offices, along with the Department of Army’s Criminal Investigative Division, led the investigation, which spanned 22 years and two continents.
Advancements in DNA technology ultimately led to Wilkerson’s conviction, as investigators were able to identify a mixture of Gonzales’ and Wilkerson’s DNA on a sweatshirt that Wilkerson was wearing during the time Gonzales was murdered, Army Times previously reported.
While Wilkerson lived free for years, the murder was pinned on Chinu Kim, a soldier who lived in the next room to Gonzales and who killed two mechanics five years after the death of Gonzales.
“Justice for victims is not just a promise, it’s a commitment, no matter how long it takes,” Assistant Director Chad Yarbrough of the FBI Criminal Investigative Division said in a release.
Riley Ceder is an editorial fellow at Military Times, where he covers breaking news, criminal justice and human interest stories. He previously worked as an investigative practicum student at The Washington Post, where he contributed to the ongoing Abused by the Badge investigation.
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