A Missouri woman who survived a kidnapping and shooting by hiding under her friend’s body until her attackers fled has now testified in court against one of them.
Springfield Daily Citizen Melissa Pugh was reported to have testified against Steven Chase Calverley, one of nine men charged in the August 2020 kidnapping that resulted in the death of her friend Sarah Pascoe and nearly took her own life. Calverley was later found guilty of second-degree murder and other related charges.
Pasco, 27, was shot in the head and killed after her kidnapper, Gary Hunter Jr., and eight of his companions forced her into a remote well in Lawrence County, Missouri. Pasco died instantly. To survive, Pugh made the crucial decision to remain motionless beneath his friend’s body and wait for the attackers to leave, believing that they were both dead.
In 2022, Hunter Jr. was sentenced to 40 years in prison after pleading guilty to second-degree murder and first-degree kidnapping charges, the Associated Press reported. Local outlet KY3 noted that he accepted a plea deal to avoid the possible death penalty. Authorities identified Hunter Jr. as the ringleader who initiated the kidnappings, which eventually involved eight other men believed to be part of a local gang.
According to KY3, after a week-long investigation, all nine suspects were captured. Of those, Calverley, 33, was the only defendant to go to trial, according to *Daily Citizen*. During the trial, Pugh, one of the victims, said he had forgiven Calverley, but questioned why he, a Purple Heart-winning U.S. Marine, failed to intervene and stop Hunter Jr.
“I know God spared my life for a reason,” Pugh told the court. daily citizen“But I don’t understand why none of them tried to help us… especially since Mr. Calverley was a war hero.”
According to KOLR 10, the incident began in Stotts City when Hunter Jr. approached Pasco and Pugh while sitting in his vehicle. They asked to enter their car, then brandished a gun and forced them to drive to Christina Knapp’s home. Of colleagues. Knapp later pleaded guilty to robbery and kidnapping charges, KY3 and the Associated Press reported.
Over time, Hunter Jr. enlisted eight associates, intimidated Pascoe and Pugh and forced them to dig their own graves in Knapp’s yard. The group eventually drove the victims in two cars to a wooded area in Miller, Missouri. There, Hunter Jr. pushed the women into an abandoned well and shot Pasco, believing both victims to be dead. However, Pugh survived by hiding under Pascoe’s body, running down the well, and calling 911 after the kidnappers left.
During his sentencing, Calverley expressed remorse by reading a letter addressed to the families of Pascoe and Pugh, the Daily Citizen reported. He said, “I’m not asking you to forgive me. But I want you to know that I’m sorry.” “I’m sorry I was a coward and didn’t try harder to stop him. I’m sorry I didn’t call 911 and report him. I’m sorry I didn’t try to put myself between him and you guys ..”
