Man accused of robbing two banks in Billings

Billings, Montana – In Yellowstone County District Court on Wednesday, a man was charged with robbing two banks in Billings within a week.

During an arraignment hearing, Patrick Allen Justice, 25, was accused of two counts of felony robbery. Justice was also charged with narcotic offenses from a case brought in 2022 as well as a separate felony assault accusation from an incident that occurred in July. He submitted not guilty pleas to each accusation, and the concurrent $50,000 bond amount was imposed in each case.

Prosecutors claim that an 87-year-old man was operating the getaway vehicle in the second bank heist. He was also detained, but has not yet made his way to court for an arraignment. Following his first booking, Steven Jamie Whitecloud was later released from the Yellowstone County jail due to what an official described as suspected medical issues.

Whitecloud had prior felony convictions in Yellowstone County for robbery in 2008 and criminal endangerment in 2021, according to state prison records. At the time of his arrest for the two most recent bank robberies, he was on probation.

On August 24, the two men are accused of robbing the US Bank on Grand Avenue, and four days later, they allegedly attacked the Wells Fargo Bank on Main Street. Soon after the second robbery, they were apprehended after a police officer spotted a vehicle that matched the description of one used in the first robbery. After a brief, slow-moving chase, the men were apprehended without incident, according to the police.

A US Bank employee reported to authorities that he witnessed a suspect enter the building while donning a blue bandana over his face, sunglasses, and a straw hat. The employee reported that the guy came up to his register and handed him a note that read, “Give me all the money in the register, no GPS, no pen. I have a weapon,” the court documents state.

As instructed, the employee emptied the till and gave the money to the suspect, who then left the bank and headed down an alley. Approximately $3,092 was taken during the robbery, according to court documents.

Court documents show that four days later, at around 4:30 p.m., a Wells Fargo employee reported to police that a guy had approached her till and handed her a note that said, “Give me the money in the cash register, no dye packs,” according to the employee.

The employee further claimed that the suspect indicated he was “strapped” and threatened to shoot up the bank if the money was not given to him, despite the fact that she did not see the suspect brandish a gun.

Another officer saw a green Ford Taurus driving south on Main Street while the officers were at the Heights bank. The car was identical to the one the suspects had left the bank in following the initial robbery. The car “continued to drive and a brief pursuit occurred” when the officer conducted a traffic stop before the car stopped on Sixth Avenue North, where Justice and Whitecloud were apprehended.

Justice allegedly confessed to the two robberies afterwards, according to the prosecution.