A truck driver was sentenced to life in prison on Thursday for the murder of an Army veteran last summer. 

28-year-old Naasson Hazzard was convicted of kidnapping resulting in death back in February, and was sentenced to life in prison for his crimes on Thursday, June 12th. 

According to Fort-Worth Star Telegram, Surveillance video used in the investigation showed 25-year-old Caleigha Zangari entering Hazzard’s semi truck on the evening of August 15th, 2024. She was not seen again until eight days later, when her body was found in the woods off of Texas Highway 11 in Pittsburg, Texas. A plastic bag was tied around her head. 

The US Attorney’s Office has made the following statement regarding the crime: 

“Cell phone records showed that on the evening of Aug. 15, Mr. Hazzard traveled from the pickup location to a nearby parking lot, where he remained for approximately 17 minutes. He then drove over three hours to a wooded area off Highway 11 in Pittsburg, Texas, where he texted his boss that he would be out sick the following day and remained for almost an hour before completing a load for work.

The next day, he and his wife returned to the scene before going to dinner in Tyler, Texas.

In the days that followed, Mr. Hazzard switched cell phones and deleted his Google and Life360 location sharing accounts. He also cleaned the truck with bleach and searched “how many years for first second and third degree murders.” Meanwhile, his wife searched for “Pittsburg Texas news.”

On Aug. 23, the same day the victim’s body was recovered, agents found her cell phone shattered on the side of the road along Mr. Hazzard’s route the night she was killed.”  

Zangari’s family says she had previously served in Afghanistan and was an Army veteran. They say she became a victim of sex trafficking after returning home to the United States.