Michigan homicide suspect escapes custody in Sanders County

A Michigan man wanted for a 2011 homicide escaped from custody Sunday morning in the Plains area.

Chadwick Shane Mobley, 42, was arrested and jailed in the Lincoln County Detention Center on June 28.

According to information from the Sanders County Sheriff’s Office, Mobley escaped custody at the Town Pump in Plains at about 9:58 a.m.

Lincoln County Sheriff Darren Short said Mobley was being moved via a transport company contracted by the U.S. Marshals Service.

Mobley, 6 feet, 150 pounds, was reported to be wearing a light colored T-shirt, camouflage pants, ball cap, boots and a black coat at the time he escaped.

The sheriff’s office and Plains Police Department were searching for Mobley and advising people there to lock their vehicles and residences while keeping an eye out for the fugitive.

Mobley was able to remove his handcuffs as well as ankle shackles and run.

Authorities also released an updated photo of Mobley from when he was detained in Lincoln County.

Sanders County residents were asked to check security cameras at their businesses and homes between about 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Authorities were looking for any information that would give them a direction of travel or anything about Mobley’s escape.

Law enforcement said people should consider Mobley dangerous and to not approach him. They recommended calling 911 if he is seen.

People with other information are asked to contact Sanders County Sheriff Office Deputy Timothy Kelly at 406-827-3584, ext. 3, or email Deputy Kelly directly with the footage or information directly to tkelly@co.sanders.mt.us

Mobley appeared in Lincoln County District Court June 29 for a hearing in front of Judge Matt Cuffe. Attorney Scott B. Johnson represented Mobley while Jeffrey Zwang represented the government.

Cuffe told Mobley he was not obligated to waive extradition, but the defendant had no qualms about his decision. He said he understood that he'll freely and willingly return to face the charges against him.

According to a press release from the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office, Mobley was the subject of a nationwide manhunt before his arrest by county officers after Sheriff’s Office dispatch received a citizen report of a possible sighting of a man who was wanted for a homicide that occurred in Michigan.

The sighting followed a Sheriff's Office Facebook post that was published about four hours prior to the arrest.

Deputies and detectives from the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office and Libby Chief of Police Cody Ercanbrack responded to the area of Mac’s Market, just north of Libby on Montana 37 where the fugitive had been seen.

Responding officers arrived and contacted Mobley. He is facing charges of first degree felony murder, first degree premeditated murder and one felony gun charge.

According to the Utah Department of Public Safety, on June 21, Michigan State Police asked the Utah State Bureau of Investigation to assist in a homicide investigation for an incident that occurred in 2011 in Michigan.

Before his arrest on June 28, Mobley was last seen in Corrine, Utah on the morning of June 7.

Michigan State Police revealed to MLive that Mobley’s DNA was matched to him via familial genealogy after the DNA found on the evidence from a November 2011 death of 20-year-old Andrea Eilber.

According to the news report, the woman had been found on Nov. 16, 2011, in her aunt and uncle’s basement, having been bound and killed by a single gunshot to the head two days prior.

She had been alone in the Mayfield Township home while her relatives took a trip. Though she had originally planned to spend the day of the murder at the house with her boyfriend Kenneth Grondin III, she later canceled on him.

The boyfriend, nicknamed KC and 19-years-old at the time of the murder, was charged and convicted of the crime, with the 2015 conviction later overturned in 2018.