MOULTRIE, Ga. — A Moultrie native who was held as a prisoner of war during Operation Desert Storm died Dec. 16 at his home in Topsail Island, N.C.

Chief Warrant Officer Five Guy Leslie Hunter Jr., 77, was known for his 32-year career in the Marine Corps, according to his brother, Roger Hunter, who spoke with The Observer on Tuesday morning. 

Guy Hunter was the first ever Marine CW05, according to his obituary which was originally published in Jackson Daily News. He was awarded the Prisoner of War Medal, Purple Heart Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Air Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Kuwait Liberation Medal, Combat Action Ribbon, Navy Commendation Medal, and Expert Rifle and Pistol Awards.

Hunter was born in Moultrie and has ten brothers and sisters, according to Roger. He graduated Moultrie High School in 1962 at the age of 17.

“He wanted to go into the Marine Corps as soon as he left school. He had to get parent’s permission before he went in. But he knew that’s what he wanted,” said Roger.

After finishing basic training at Parris Island, South Carolina, he was assigned as a radioman in Vietnam for the 1st Marine Air Wing Pathfinder platoon, according to his biography by the Gathering of Eagles Foundation. 

“Hunter spent four tours in Vietnam, performing multiple duties, culminating his assignment as a Naval gunfire spotter… Hunter became a full-time aerial observer, crisscrossing between coasts in the U.S. and was eventually assigned to Marine Observation Squadron (VMO) 2, the unit with which he deployed to Iraq during the Gulf War,” the biography reads.

On the morning of Jan. 18, 1991, Hunter was sent on a mission as part of Operation Desert Storm. Hunter’s OV-10 Bronco, piloted by Cliff Acree, was shot down by a surface-to-air missile in Kuwait. Hunter and Acree were captured as prisoners of war, according to the biography.

“Both Hunter and Acree would spend 48 days in captivity and at the age of 46, Hunter was the oldest POW during all of Operation Desert Storm. Malnourished, tortured and kept in isolation for the majority of his captivity… During his captivity, his wife, Mary, never lost hope and on March 5, the two were reunited when Hunter and his fellow POW’s were released,” reads the article.

His brother said stories such as this had given him the title of “legend” within the Marine Corps.

“He was this larger than life figure…,” Roger Hunter said. “People from all over would come to him for advice. He was a huge influence… He was a legend within the Corps. There is so much to say but he was just larger than life,”

You can find more information regarding Guy’s life here.

In lieu of flowers the family requests donations be made in honor of Guy to the Jacksonville, North Carolina, Chapter of the Military Order of the Purple Heart.