Staff Sgt. Adam Arndt, a 31-year-old Army recruiter, was found dead in his Germantown, Md., home Monday morning from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after allegedly killing 17-year-old Army recruit Michelle Miller.
A handgun was reportedly found in the residence with the bodies, though police refused to release further details of the apparent murder-suicide.
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It's unclear whether or not
Arndt recruited Miller, a senior at Maryland's Rockville High School who enlisted in the National Guard following graduation, reported The Associated Press.
Miller's father, Kevin, said his daughter appeared to be "a little smitten with this guy," referring to Arndt, who she met four or five months ago.
Kevin Miller said the high school senior left their home Sunday saying that someone in her platoon was suicidal. The victim did not answer the father's repeated calls and text messages later that night.
A nine-year veteran with overseas service,
Arndt reportedly married another former recruit in June of 2012, The Washington Post reported.
Arndt's wife Kaitlyn, 21, reportedly enlisted at the same Gaithersburg recruiting center where the staff sergeant worked. She is now stationed in North Carolina and did not respond to media inquiries.
Kaitlyn’s mother, Paula Schum, said Arndt and her daughter were planning to start a family and "seemed to be a great couple."
Kaitlyn Arndt’s parents did not hear or suspect anything regarding Arndt’s involvement with Miller, The Post reported.
"I’m in total disbelief," said her father Randy, who claimed to have barely seen Arndt since the wedding last June. "This is unbelievable."
Arndt, a native of Manitowoc, Wis., joined the Army in October 2003. He served in Turkey, Korea, and Germany before he was assigned to the Gaithersburg recruiting center in 2010.
Kathleen Welker, a spokeswoman for U.S. Army recruiting, said one of Arndt's duties was to visit schools, but she could not confirm whether he had visited Miller's Rockville High School.
Welker told The Post that under Army policies, all recruiters are prohibited from fraternizing with recruits. This includes dating, inviting recruits to their homes, or having any kind of personal relationship with recruits, reported The Post.
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