(The Center Square) – An illegal foreign national in Montana faces up to 40 years in prison after pleading guilty in Bozeman to mitigated deliberate homicide for stabbing a man to death.
Francisco Padilla Canales initially pled not guilty and faced charges including deliberate homicide, aggravated kidnapping, tampering with witnesses and information, and aggravated burglary.
According to Attorney General Austin Knudsen’s office, the victim was in a relationship with Canales’ estranged wife.
“After tracking his estranged wife with a GPS device planted on her car and discovering that she and the victim and were in a relationship, Canales attacked the pair, inflicting multiple stab wounds to the victim’s chest,” says Attorney General Austin Knudsen’s office in a news release.
“Canales also coerced his estranged wife into supporting his original statement to Bozeman Police Officers that he had not been responsible for the stabbing, before eventually making a full confession,” says the attorney general’s office. “Law enforcement officers also found three handguns, two rifles, and a shotgun in Canales’ vehicle, which he was not legally allowed to possess.”
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has detained Canales. If paroled, the attorney general’s office says he would likely be deported and prevented from receiving legal immigration status in the future.
Sentencing is set for March 18, 2024.
