GREAT FALLS - A Wolf Point man accused in the kidnapping and assault of a girl by a group of individuals on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation in 2021 today admitted to his role in the abduction, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
Cheri Cruz Granbois, 21, pleaded guilty to kidnapping of an individual under 18. Granbois faces a mandatory minimum 20 years to life in prison, a $250,000 fine and five years to a lifetime of supervised release
Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other sentencing factors. Sentencing was set for Aug. 10. Granbois was detained pending further proceedings.
The government alleged that on Sept. 15, 2021, a group of individuals lured a 15-year-old girl, identified as Jane Doe, out of her house in Wolf Point and kidnapped her. Granbois offered to pay co-defendant Kaylee Jackson to lure the victim from her house so she could be assaulted. As a result, Jane Doe was lured out of her house, and the situation escalated. Some of the individuals in the group assaulted the victim in her front yard. When eyewitnesses yelled that they were going to call the police, some of individuals kidnapped Jane Doe, forcing her into a vehicle and driving to a vacant field where the assault continued. Granbois grabbed the victim and beat her in the vehicle.
Granbois is the last of six defendants indicted in the case to plead guilty. Co-defendants Dylan Troy Jackson, Kaylee Jade Jackson, Patti Jo Annunciata Mail, Lavanchie Patricia Goodbird and Elmarie Amelia Weeks have pleaded guilty to charges and are pending sentencing.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Wendy A. Johnson and Ryan G. Weldon are prosecuting the case, which was investigated by the FBI, Fort Peck Law Enforcement, Roosevelt County Sheriff’s Office and Wolf Point Police Department.
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Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys