A Navy sailor admitted Monday that he strangled and killed a fellow service member before hiding her body in a suitcase and dumping it in a wooded area near Naval Station Norfolk, a guilty plea that is renewing questions of why military officials failed to remove him from service despite multiple prior allegations of violence against women. Culinary Specialist 3rd Class Jeremiah Copeland pleaded guilty during a military court-martial to the unpremeditated murder of Petty Officer 3rd Class Angelina Resendiz, a 21-year-old sailor assigned to the guided-missile destroyer USS James E. Williams. “I killed CS3 Resendiz on May 29, 2025,” Copeland told the military judge. “I strangled her with my hands.” Under a plea agreement accepted by the court, Copeland also pleaded guilty to aggravated assault by strangulation, indecent recording, obstruction of justice, and making a false official statement. He faces a minimum sentence of 40 years and two months in prison, a dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and mandatory registration as a sex offender. According to court proceedings, Resendiz entered Copeland’s barracks room on May 29, 2025. Copeland admitted the two were drinking alcohol when an argument began after she saw something on his phone. He told the court he strangled her on the floor of the room before hiding her body in a suitcase in his closet. Investigators later determined Copeland kept Resendiz’s body concealed for several days before transporting it to a wooded area roughly ten miles from the base. Her decomposing remains were discovered on June 9, 2025, nearly two weeks after she vanished. But even before Resendiz’s death, Copeland was already facing allegations involving other women. Military prosecutors had previously accused Copeland of raping a fellow sailor in November 2024 and sexually assaulting and attempting to strangle another service member months earlier. Court records also show he was facing a separate rape allegation involving a civilian woman in Norfolk just days before Resendiz disappeared. His history reportedly stretches back even further. Before joining the Navy in 2023, a Washington state judge issued a temporary sexual assault protection order against Copeland involving an underage girl. He was also accused in a separate incident of kissing and groping another underage girl against her will. Resendiz’s mother, Esmeralda Castle, has repeatedly argued that Navy leadership failed to act despite numerous warning signs. “This situation was absolutely preventable,” Castle said before trial proceedings began. “If they would have dealt with him when he started harming women, he would never have gotten to Angie,” she later told Fox News. Castle has been among the most vocal critics of the Navy’s response to her daughter’s disappearance. Resendiz was last seen on May 29, 2025, but a statewide missing-person alert was not issued until five days later after military officials initially classified her as absent without leave. The delay sparked criticism from family members and comparisons to the case of Army Specialist Vanessa Guillen, whose murder prompted sweeping reforms throughout the military regarding sexual harassment and assault investigations. Friends and family described Resendiz as a bright and ambitious young sailor who hoped to build a career in military culinary arts. According to her mother, Resendiz aimed to one day join the Navy’s elite culinary competition team and cook for world leaders. Following Monday’s plea hearing, Castle met privately with Copeland. “I thanked him for telling the truth,” she said. While Castle said hearing Copeland finally admit responsibility brought her “peace of mind,” she remains convinced the tragedy should never have happened. “We have statutes, and we have policies, and we have procedures that were implemented by Congress to protect service members from this type of violence,” Castle said. “And nothing’s changed.” The military judge is expected to formally impose a sentence under the terms of the plea agreement following the conclusion of court-martial proceedings.