BILLINGS - A man who authorities said "terrorized" residents of a Billings South Side neighborhood was charged Wednesday with numerous felony crimes.
Cody Kent Elkshoulder, 26, appeared for arraignment in Yellowstone County District Court by video from the county jail and pleaded not guilty to five counts of felony assault with a weapon, one count of felony attempted robbery, and a misdemeanor charge of obstructing a peace officer.
Bond was set at $50,000 after a prosecutor said Elkshoulder is a registered sex offender who "terrorized residents" of a Billings neighborhood.
According to court records, Elkshoulder was arrested after police received a report at about 10 p.m. Friday of a man walking down the street and pointing a gun at people near Fourth Avenue South and South 33rd Street.
One witness told officers that she saw a man holding a gun near her vehicle in her driveway and asked him what he was doing. The man yelled at her to "go away," court records state.
Another woman told officers a man walking in the area came up to her, pushed her to the ground, and pointed a gun at her while threatening her.
A man told officers he was in his vehicle in the same area when a man stepped in front of him in the middle of the street, blocking his vehicle. The man in the street pointed a firearm at him and then appeared to try and fire the weapon as he drove off.
Two more people in a vehicle said they saw a man walking straight towards them. The man came up to the driver's side and tried to open the door while pointing a gun at the driver and yelling at him to get out. The man drove off and the assailant struck a window with the butt of the gun, court records state.
All of the witnesses said they feared for their safety.
An officer reported he saw a man matching the suspect's description in the area and ordered the man to the ground. The man did not comply and appeared to be holding something inside a pocket. The man eventually complied and as the officer was taking control of him a firearm fell from the man's possession, court records state. Elkshoulder was arrested and the firearm was determined to be a BB gun, court records state.
