Naasson Hazzard, a 28-year-old truck driver from Austin, was sentenced today to life in federal prison for the kidnapping and murder of a 25-year-old Army veteran, Caleigha Zangari of San Diego, whose body was found in the woods in August 2024. The sentence, which was mandatory for the charge of kidnapping resulting in death, was announced by Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Nancy E. Larson. Zangari’s family identified her as a sex trafficking victim.
Hazzard was indicted in October 2024 and convicted by a jury after an eight-day trial in late January of this year. U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsay handed down the life sentence today.
Evidence presented at trial revealed chilling details of the crime. Surveillance video captured the victim entering Hazzard’s semi-truck in Dallas at 9:27 p.m. on August 15, 2024. Eight days later, her decomposing body was discovered in a wooded area off Texas Highway 11 in Pittsburg, Texas, with a black plastic bag tied around her head. Information shared during the sentencing hearing highlighted that the victim, an Army veteran who joined the military directly after high school, received full military honors at her funeral…