A Navy sailor received a 44-year prison sentence for the killing of Angelina Resendiz, a Brownsville woman who served in the Navy.

Jeremiah Copeland, 21, was sentenced on June 9, 2026, exactly one year after Resendiz's remains were found in Virginia. He pleaded guilty to multiple charges in connection to her death on June 8, 2026.

According to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, Copeland will also receive a dishonorable discharge and must forfeit all pay and allowances.

Resendiz was 21 years old when she died. She had been living at the naval station in Norfolk, Virginia for more than a year and worked as a culinary specialist with the Navy.

Two friends reported Resendiz missing on May 29, 2025. Her body was discovered in a wooded area less than 10 miles from her barracks on June 9, 2025.

Copeland was placed in pretrial confinement on June 10, 2025, in connection to her death.

Resendiz's body arrived in Harlingen with full military honors on June 20, 2025. Funeral services were held in Brownsville on June 27, 2025.

In November, her ashes were buried at the State Veterans Cemetery in Mission.

Family and friends of Resendiz were in Norfolk, Virginia for the sentencing hearing. The announcement also reached those in the Rio Grande Valley who had been closely following the case.

Channel 5 News spoke to Esmeralda Castle, Resendiz's mother, exactly one year ago. At that time, her daughter had only been reported missing from her base in Virginia.

"I'm hoping to find her. I'm hoping for action," Castle said during the June 2025 interview.

Copeland pleaded not guilty to sexual assault charges in the case. However, Castle said Copeland had a history of sexually assaulting other women.

Castle also said Resendiz's supervisors did not take her disappearance seriously, telling her that Resendiz had gone absent without leave.

"I was like, ‘not Angie. She's afraid to miss work. She's missing, I need to talk to somebody else.’ It wasn't going to go anywhere else with him," Castle said.

Army veteran Naomi Oliva Rios said she was sexually assaulted while serving. When she learned what happened to Resendiz, she started following the case.

"I said, 'another one of us is gone because nobody saw the signs,'" Rios said. "Fortunately he was brought to justice, he is gonna serve time. But unfortunately this is going to continue to happen."

"Her chain of command failed her. They're supposed to be responsible and be accountable for all of their service members," Rios said.

Resendiz's brother, Juan Resendiz, described his sister as a sweet and caring young woman.

"Angelina was everything to us. Bright, kind and full of dreams," Juan Resendiz said.

He said the family plans to keep pushing for more justice.

Castle said there is still work to be done, including an investigation to hold the Navy and Resendiz's supervisors accountable.

"I'm very grateful to the community and their response and their desire to see this with me,” Castle said. “I don't want people to remember Angie and think fear, that there needs to be something that we're afraid of. If you think about Angie, you face those fears."

Watch the video above for the full story.

RELATED COVERAGE:

• ‘Angelina was everything to us’: Family of slain Brownsville sailor reacts to killer’s plea deal
• Body of fallen sailor Angelina Resendiz arrives in Harlingen
• Grieving brother pleads for answers after Brownsville sailor found dead in Virginia
• Brownsville sailor laid to rest with military honors
• Family, friends celebrate life of slain Brownsville sailor on her birthday