FBI: Man once thought dead arrested in slain Las Vegas girl’s kidnapping

Staff and wire reports

Published Sunday, Nov. 14, 2010 | 2:55 p.m.

Updated Sunday, Nov. 14, 2010 | 3:27 p.m.

A man who was declared legally dead 16 years ago in Mississippi was arrested Sunday in the kidnapping of a slain Las Vegas girl whose body was found in the woods of central Louisiana, the FBI said.

FBI and Harrison County Sheriff's Department officials located Thomas Steven Sanders, 53, about 5 a.m. Las Vegas time at a Flying J Truck Stop in Gulfport, Miss., said Robert E. King, supervisory senior resident agent with the FBI in Alexandria, La. He was arrested without incident.

The arrest capped a massive manhunt in a bizarre case that stretched across the country.

Court documents obtained by The Associated Press show Sanders abandoned his family in 1987 and was declared dead by a Mississippi court 1994. He lived unnoticed for years despite being arrested several times.

Sanders was wanted in the kidnapping 12-year-old Lexis Roberts, whose skeleton was found by hunters early last month. Her 31-year-old mother, Suellen Roberts, is missing. Officials say she is not a suspect in her daughter's death — and they hope she has not met with foul play.

Investigators received a tip a few days ago that Sanders was frequenting the truck stop, which led to his arrest this morning, King said. Sanders was alone when arrested, he said.

Sanders still was driving the silver 2001 Kia Spectra tied to the disappearance of Lexis and Suellen Roberts, but the car bore different license plates, King said.

Numerous law enforcement officials are interviewing Sanders to piece together events and continue the investigation, King said.

Sanders will face a federal magistrate judge in Mississippi on Monday for the federal kidnapping warrant issued by Louisiana authorities in early November before likely being extradited back to Louisiana, King said.

Despite being declared dead, Sanders had been able to move about the country easily. Investigators know he lived in Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Georgia and Nevada. He worked as a laborer, a welder and a scrap metal collector.

According to records obtained by the AP, his arrests included possession of drug paraphernalia and a number of traffic and motor vehicle incidents, all in Tennessee. He was sentenced to two years in Georgia for simple battery. State and federal authorities have said some of the charges involved minors, but they refused to elaborate.

In Nevada, Sanders met Suellen Roberts and her daughter, Lexis, a few months ago, the slain girl's grandmother told investigators. The trio was in Williams and Flagstaff Ariz., and the Grand Canyon National Park over the Labor Day weekend, authorities said.

Hunters found Lexis' remains in Catahoula Parish Oct. 8. There was evidence she had been shot.

Officials said security cameras showed Sanders buying ammunition on Sept. 3 at a Walmart in Las Vegas. The bullets he bought were consistent with the weapon used to kill Lexis, police said.