(NORFOLK, VA) — A 21-year-old Navy sailor who mysteriously disappeared in Virginia has been found dead, and another sailor is in custody, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service said.
Angelina “Angie” Resendiz was last seen on the morning of May 29 at her barracks in Miller Hall at Naval Station Norfolk, according to the Virginia State Police.
Resendiz’s body was found in a wooded area in Norfolk on Monday; the remains were confirmed to be the missing sailor on Tuesday, NCIS said.
Another Navy sailor “has been placed in pretrial confinement” in connection with Resendiz’s death, NCIS said. The sailor was not named.
“Charges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice are pending,” NCIS said in a statement. “NCIS remains committed to uncovering the facts surrounding the tragic death of Seaman Resendiz to ensure accountability and justice.”
Resendiz, a Texas native, was a culinary specialist assigned to the USS James E. Williams, the Navy said.
Resendiz joined the Navy in 2023 after high school “because she felt it was something that called her,” her mother, Esmeralda Castle, wrote to ABC News last week.
As a culinary specialist, “She thought that one day she might be able to cook for the president and other world leaders,” Castle said. “She worked really hard on her ship.”
“People that care about Angie shared with me that the last person she was with was missing with her,” and “that person showed up [on June 2] but not Angie,” Castle said.
“There are no answers for me,” she said. “I just want my kid.”
Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
