CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – New details have emerged following the arrest of two people in the slaying of Pfc. Katia Duenas Aguilar, including federal charges for marriage fraud.
On the night of May 18, 2024, police responded to an ambulance call in the 900 block of Tiny Town Road, according to previous reports. Inside the residence they found Aguilar dead, and her death was ruled a homicide. According to an autopsy report, Aguilar was stabbed to death, with approximately 68 wounds to her neck, head, chest and shoulder.
On Feb. 7, 36-year-old Sofia Rodas and 40-year-old Reynaldo Salinas-Cruz (Aguilar’s husband), who were already in federal custody, were extradited to Clarksville on charges related to the murder of Aguilar.
Marriage fraud to avoid immigration
A U.S. grand jury in October indicted Salinas-Cruz and Rodas on charges of marriage fraud. The law states, “Any individual who knowingly enters into a marriage for the purpose of evading any provision of the immigration laws shall be imprisoned for not more than five years, or fined not more than $250,000, or both.”
According to the indictment, around September 2023, Salinas-Cruz and Rodas “did knowingly combine, conspire, confederate and agree” with each other and with others to enter into marriage in order to evade immigration laws, an agreement that lasted until May 17, 2024.
Rodas, originally from El Salvador, was only charged with one count of marriage fraud, while Salinas-Cruz, born in Mexico, received two counts.
In addition to his marriage to Rodas, the indictment states that on or about Oct. 6, 2023, Salinas-Cruz married a different woman to evade immigration laws.
Deaths of married soldiers
According to documents obtained by Clarksville Now, Salinas-Cruz and Rodas had been married, not just to each other, but to two Fort Campbell soldiers.
On May 22, 2020, Salinas-Cruz, of Mexico, married “Sophia” Rodas of El Salvador, with her first name spelled differently on that document. They would remain married for 2 1/2 years before divorcing.
Over two years later, on Dec. 16, 2022, a Fort Campbell soldier, Staff Sgt. Jeffrey Scott Thompson, married Rodas. They spent the next 10 months together as husband and wife, however, on Oct. 29, 2023, Thompson suddenly died. According to posts on Facebook, he died by suicide. When Clarksville Now reached out to the Clarksville Police Department to request Thompson’s cause of death, the request was denied on the grounds that it is part of an open criminal investigation.
On Oct. 6, 2023, Salinas-Cruz married Aguilar. Salinas-Cruz was married to Aguilar for seven months before her murder.
Count one of the U.S. grand jury indictment states that Salinas-Cruz and Rodas’ marriage fraud began during or around Sept. 2023 and continued until May 17, 2024 – the day before Aguilar’s murder.
Timeline
- May 22, 2020: Salinas-Cruz marries Rodas.
- Dec. 2, 2022: Salinas-Cruz and Rodas divorce.
- Dec. 16, 2022: Rodas marries Thompson.
- Sept. 22, 2023: Aguilar and unnamed husband divorce.
- Oct. 6, 2023: Salinas-Cruz marries Aguilar.
- Oct. 29, 2023: Thompson dies.
- May 18, 2024: Aguilar is murdered.
Arraignment set
Salinas-Cruz and Rodas were arrested Oct. 4 on the federal marriage fraud charges. Three days later, Rodas pleaded not guilty. On Oct. 10, Salinas-Cruz also pleaded not guilty, but in November he changed his pleas to guilty to both counts of marriage fraud. He was sentenced to four counts of time served.
In December, the Montgomery County Grand Jury indicted Rodas on charges of first-degree murder and tampering with evidence and Salinas-Cruz on one charge of tampering with evidence.
They were extradited to Clarksville on Feb. 7 and booked into Montgomery County Jail. Both are expected to appear in court for arraignment at 9 a.m. on Feb. 21 at the Montgomery County Courts Complex.
Clarksville Now has attempted to reach out to the Thompson family for comment.