GREAT FALLS - A Wolf Point man suspected of a convenience store robbery in Billings and armed carjackings in Billings and Cascade County appeared for arraignment Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Great Falls on multiple federal charges
Santana Cruz Ledeau, 26, pleaded not guilty to charges of robbery affecting commerce, two counts of carjacking, attempted carjacking, and two counts of using, carrying and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a press release.
If convicted of the most serious crime, Ledeau faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release on the robbery charge, and a mandatory minimum seven years to life in prison, consecutive to any other sentence, a $250,000 fine and three years of release on the firearm charge, the press release states.
Ledeau was detained while the case is pending.
Federal prosecutors allege that on June 11, 2022, Ledeau robbed On the Run, a gas station convenience store in Billings, and threatened an employee.
Prosecutors further allege that on Sept. 30, 2022 near Billings, Ledeau brandished a firearm while carjacking a vehicle from a female victim.
In addition, Ledeau is accused of using a firearm while carjacking a vehicle from a male victim on Oct. 17, 2022 near Cascade, in Cascade County, and attempting to carjack a vehicle from another male victim near Ulm on the same day.
