On September 1, 2023, at about 2:41 a.m., officers responded to a report of a gunshot victim in the 800 block of Atlas Avenue in Killeen, Texas. They found 22-year-old Hispanic Sergeant Valeria Favila suffering from a gunshot wound. She was taken to Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center in critical condition and pronounced dead at 3:57 a.m. by Justice of the Peace Gregory Johnson.

Favila served as a Human Resources Sergeant in the 215th Brigade Support Battalion, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division at Fort Cavazos and had joined the U.S. Army in 2019. Her death was the ninth homicide in Killeen in 2023. The Killeen Police Department’s Robbery/Homicide Unit, aided by community tips and Crime Stoppers leads, identified 32-year-old Angelica Sharice Lamar Higgins as a suspect; Higgins was located at her Harker Heights residence on September 6, 2023, and taken into custody. Bond was set at $1,000,000 by Justice of the Peace Larry Wilkey.

The motive has not been disclosed, and authorities have not released further details about any relationship between Higgins and Favila or events leading up to the shooting. A candlelight vigil was held on September 15, 2023, at Carl Levin Park in Harker Heights to honor Favila’s service and memory.

If anyone has information about this case or knew Sergeant Favila, please share what you know with investigators.