Thomas Steven Sanders Indicted on Kidnapping Charges
| U.S. Attorney’s Office November 18, 2010 |
ALEXANDRIA, LA—Thomas Steven Sanders, 53, was indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of kidnapping of 12-year-old Lexis Roberts, United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today. Sanders is scheduled to appear for arraignment and detention hearing before United States Magistrate Judge James D. Kirk on Friday, November 19, 2010, at 11:00 a.m.
The indictment alleges that Sanders kidnapped and abducted Lexis Roberts in Arizona and took her to Louisiana, resulting in her death.
Sanders was wanted after authorities in Catahoula Parish identified the remains of 12-year-old Lexis Roberts of Las Vegas. Her body was found in woods near Harrisonburg, La., on October 8, 2010. Sanders was apprehended in Gulfport, Mississippi, at a truck stop.
If convicted, Sanders could face the death penalty.
An indictment is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The case was investigated by the Catahoula Parish Sheriff's Office, the FBI-Alexandria Field Office, and the Central Louisiana Safe Streets Task Force. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Nicole O. Snyder.