Pvt. Gregory Wedel-Morales, 23, went missing in August 2019. Ten months passed before his body was found and an autopsy revealed he had died from being shot in the head. (Kim Wedel)
Two men have been arrested and charged with murder in the death of a Fort Hood soldier whose remains were found in a field in Killeen, Texas, nearly six years ago, according to local police.
Pvt. Gregory Wedel-Morales, 23, went missing in August 2019, just days before he was set to begin the process of leaving the Army. Ten months passed before his body was found and an autopsy revealed he had died from being shot in the head.
Darius Demarcus Nobles, 28, and Darion Lequan Brown, 27, were arrested and charged with murder in Wedel-Morales’ death, Alex Gearhart, assistant chief of the Killeen Police Department, said Wednesday.
Darion Lequan Brown has been arrested and charged in the 2019 death of Army Pvt. Gregory Wedel-Morales. (Parker County Jail)
Nobles was booked Monday into a Harris County jail based on the Killeen warrant, according to online jail records. Brown was arrested in Parker County, west of Fort Worth, in December for a parole violation and was served the warrant while in custody.
The Bell County District Attorney’s Office accepted the case Dec. 30, Gearhart said.
Kim Wedel, the soldier’s mother, said the arrests sparked mixed feelings for her.
“I’m glad that they finally identified some people that are responsible. I personally think there’s still more people involved,” she said. “I’m very glad two people are off the street that they feel were involved.”
Police linked the two men to the soldier using cellphone records, according to court documents. One of the last numbers to dial Wedel-Morales’ phone belonged to a minor whose mother told police the phone had been stolen by Brown, whom she knew as “Kash.”
Police then interviewed Brown on March 5, 2024, and he said he knew Wedel-Morales, according to court documents. After changing his story a couple times, Brown finally told police he served as a lookout when Nobles shot and killed Wedel-Morales.
“Brown stated that he and Nobles are affiliated with a gang and they were instructed to kill Wedel-Morales as a way to ‘put in work,’ ” according to court documents.
Killeen police also linked a 9mm handgun that was collected from the two men during a September 2019 arrest in San Saba to a shell casing found in the field Wedel-Morales’ body was found. During that 2019 arrest Nobles told police the gun belonged to him, according to court documents.
Wedel said her son, after moving to Fort Hood, changed from the fun-loving, goofy kid whom she raised in Oklahoma. He began hanging out with people she did not approve of and keeping secrets from her, including marrying Penny Morales, 36. She was convicted of aggravated robbery and sentenced in 2023 to seven years in Texas prison.
“He was in the process of getting a divorce. He had plans to go do things with his life, so he had a plan to turn it all around,” Wedel said. “He just didn’t get that chance. I guess that’s the hardest part of all of this. He was robbed of the chance to figure it out and get his life on track.”
Wedel-Morales’ disappearance and its handling was one of several that in 2020 initiated a policy review that led the Army to reshape its missing soldier protocols.
His unit initially labeled him a deserter, which slowed early efforts to search for him. The soldier’s mother also had to fight removal of the status so she could have her son returned home and buried in a veterans cemetery.
The Army now labels soldiers who do not show up for duty as “absent-unknown,” and commanders must launch an immediate effort to find the missing soldier.
A Fort Hood spokesperson said officials at the base are aware of the arrests.
“This development is a testament to the diligent and persistent work of the Killeen Police Department, our own Criminal Investigation Division and the other law enforcement agencies involved. Our deepest condolences remain with the Wedel-Morales family, who have endured so much during this difficult time. We are grateful to all the agencies whose tireless efforts led to these charges,” the spokesperson said.
The Army Criminal Investigation Division has been involved in the case and declined to comment because of the ongoing criminal charges.
