Kidnapping Suspect Arrested

Catahoula Parish Sheriff James Kelly; United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley, Western District of Louisiana; Daniel McMullen, Special Agent in Charge of the Jackson Division of the FBI; and David W. Welker, Special Agent in Charge of the New Orleans Division of the FBI, announce the following:

This morning at approximately 7:00 a.m., Thomas Steven Sanders, age 53, was arrested at the Flying J Truck Stop by Gulfport FBI agents of the Jackson Division and Harrison County sheriff's deputies. Sanders was being sought on federal kidnapping charges obtained in the Western District of Louisiana for the abduction of Lexis Kaye Roberts, age 12, of Las Vegas, Nevada.   

On the evening of Oct. 8, 2010, human skeletal remains were found in a wooded area north of Harrisonburg, La. The remains, later identified as being Lexis, were found by hunters who reported it to the Catahoula Parish Sheriff's Office. The investigation that followed led to Sanders being charged with kidnapping.

Numerous investigative agencies, including the Louisiana State Police, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Postal Service, the Office of Louisiana Attorney General, the LSU Forensic Anthropology and Computer Enhancement Services (FACES), and law enforcement throughout the country have been involved in the case.

If you have information  regarding this ongoing investigation you are urged to call the tipline: 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324).