Fort Hood commander removed from post, won’t head Fort Bliss, as army launches investigation after string of tragedies

Fort Hood commander Maj. Gen. Scott Efflandt, initially set to take over the 1st Armored Division, isn’t going anywhere, the U.S. Army said Tuesday.

The Army announced that Maj. Gen. John B. Richardson IV will take over as deputy commanding general for operations of III Corps and acting senior commander of Fort Hood on Wednesday, a “previously scheduled change in leadership.”

But Efflandt, who has presided over a string of disappearances, murders and suicides over the past several months, will be investigated instead of transferred, the Army announced in a statement.

The Army said it will announce the name of a new commander for the 1st Armored Division “in the coming days.”

“Gen. John Murray, commanding general of Army Futures Command and one of the Army’s most senior commanders, will lead an in-depth investigation into the chain-of-command actions” related to Spc. Vanessa Guillen, the soldier who went missing in April and who was found murdered and dismembered in July, the statement said.

Guillen, 20, had complained of sexual abuse. She was one of three soldiers to be found dead in a month. The other two were Pvt. Mejhor Morta, 26, a mechanic from Pensacola, Fla., and 24-year-old Gregory Morales, whose death has been ruled suspicious.

Also spurring the investigation are a spate of soldier suicides and a prostitution ring sting involving soldiers assigned to the base, NBC News reported.

A preliminary autopsy report shows Sgt. Elder Fernandes, 23, died of suicide by hanging, KYTX-TV reported Tuesday. He too had complained of sexual abuse before going missing in Killeen, Texas.

Several investigations are being conducted at Fort Hood for “a wide range of topics and concerns,” the army said. “Gen. Murray will roll those efforts into a more complete and comprehensive investigation that will delve into all activities and levels of leadership.”

A separate, independent look at Fort Hood’s operations by a five-member civilian panel arrived Sunday to begin their two-week review, KWTX-TV reported. That panel has until mid-September to submit an interim report and the end of October for the final version, KWTX said.

In all, at least 15 soldiers station at the army base in central Texas have disappeared or died since January, U.S Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) told KTSM-TV. The base has the highest number of soldier murders and sexual assault cases out of all army installations, KTSM said.

“There is something wrong at Fort Hood,” Cuellar told KTSM.