On the evening of March 9, 2015, a violent and tragic event unfolded in Waycross, Georgia, leading to the death of 41-year-old Timothy Williams, an African American man and a father of three. What began as a routine act of kindness, giving a coworker a ride home, ended in bloodshed and a desperate fight for survival.
Timothy Williams and his colleague, Sandra Williams, were offering their co-worker, Leon Pugh, a ride home from the restaurant where they all worked.
Pugh was in the back seat when he suddenly became violent, pulling out a gun and shooting Timothy, who was in the passenger seat. He then turned the weapon on Sandra, shooting her twice before forcing her into the trunk of her own car. The motive for this sudden and brutal attack remains unclear.
Despite her life-threatening injuries, Sandra Williams managed to make a harrowing 911 call from the confines of the trunk. Though she was disoriented and in a wooded area, her call, and a subsequent one to her family, sparked a frantic search by the Waycross Police Department, the Ware County Sheriff's Office, and the Georgia State Patrol. In an incredible show of resilience, Sandra found and pulled the emergency release cord in the trunk, escaping her metal prison. She was discovered and airlifted to a hospital in Jacksonville, Florida.
Following the information provided by Sandra, authorities located the vehicle in a heavily wooded area. Inside, they found Timothy Williams, who had succumbed to a single gunshot wound. Law enforcement quickly apprehended 41-year-old Leon Pugh at his home. He was arrested and subsequently charged with murder and aggravated assault for the senseless killing of Timothy Williams and the brutal attack on Sandra Williams.
