A U.S. Army soldier, Spc. Maxwell Hockin, was found dead outside his company barracks on Saturday, October 9.
In a press statement, Fort Hood officials said Hockin, 26, was initially found unresponsive outside of the barracks and was subsequently pronounced dead.
The exact cause of Hockin’s death remains unclear, but the base officials said they do not suspect foul play. The U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division is currently investigating the death. The Fort Hood press office said “no further information will be released” about Hockin’s death while the investigation continues.
Hockin was assigned to the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division. He joined the Army in March of 2017 as a combat engineer. Hockin had been assigned to the 91st Engineer Battalion at Fort Hood since July of 2017.
“The entire Saber family is devastated by the loss of our true teammate and friend, Specialist Maxwell Hockin,” said Lt. Col. Patrick Sullivan, the commander of the 91st Engineer Battalion. “He had an outstanding work ethic and was always willing to help out the team. He will truly be missed. Our thoughts and our prayers are with Maxwell’s family during this difficult time.”
Hockin’s death at Fort Hood comes after a string of deaths and disappearances at the Army base in recent months. There were more than two dozen deaths at the base in 2020, Army Times reported, including the high-profile kidnap and murder of Spc. Vanessa Guillén in April 2020.
Following Guillén’s death, the U.S. Army initiated an independent review of Fort Hood’s command climate and 14 Fort Hood leaders were relieved of their commands after the review found widespread leadership failures at the base.
Hockin’s body was also discovered just two days after another Fort Hood soldier, Pfc. Jennifer Sewell, went missing. Sewell went missing last Thursday but was subsequently found and she safely returned to the base earlier this week.
