Two individuals have been charged in the May 2024 murder of 23-year-old Ft. Campbell soldier Katia Duenas-Aguilar, the Clarksville Police Department (CPD) announced.
Private First Class Duenas-Aguilar, a member of the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade of the United States Army’s 101st Airborne Division, was found deceased on May 18, 2024 by CPD as officers responded to an ambulance call in the 900 block of Tiny Town Rd.
Detectives with CPD’s Special Operations Homicide Unit responded to the scene as officers found Duenas-Aguilar deceased inside the residence.
Duenas-Aguilar’s death was initially ruled a homicide and, according to an autopsy report obtained by WKRN, her official cause of death was sharp force injuries to the neck as the report revealed that Duenas-Aguilar had 68 sharp force injuries on her body, most of which were to her neck.
An investigation into Duenas-Aguilar’s death led by CPD and Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID) has resulted in a Grand Jury indicting two individuals – 35-year-old Sofia Rodas and 40-year-old Reynaldo Salinas Cruz, the husband of Duenas-Aguilar.
Rodas has been charged with First Degree Murder and Tampering with Evidence while Cruz has been charged with Tampering with Evidence.
Both defendants were already in federal custody on unrelated charges at the time of their indictment, not directly associated with the homicide investigation, CPD said.
Rodas and Cruz were extradited to Clarksville on Friday, February 7 and served with their sealed indictments at the Montgomery County Jail.
As the case remains an open and active investigation awaiting prosecution, CPD is asking anyone with information regarding Duenas-Aguilar’s death to contact Detective Hofinga at (931) 648-0656, ext. 5720.
In addition, CPD says those who wish to remain anonymous or be eligible for a cash reward should call the Clarksville Montgomery County Crime Stoppers Tips Line at (931) 645-8477 or submit a tip online.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Photo “Sofia Rodas” and “Reynaldo Salinas Cruz” by Clarksville Police Department.
