Man denies lying to Missoula police, causing mall standoff

Gowdy told officers that three people had stolen his truck at gunpoint en route from Butte to Missoula. But charging documents state that he agreed to trade the truck for bail money and lied to get his truck back. 

According to charging documents, on July 6, Gowdy called law enforcement with the claim that he'd been robbed, and officers responded as if they were dealing with armed suspects. When Gowdy's truck was spotted at the Southgate Mall, the Missoula Police Department, Missoula County Sheriff's Office deputies and a plainclothes agent with the FBI all arrived on scene. 

There was one man sitting in the truck who was taken into custody at gunpoint. According to charging documents, law enforcement used physical force and displayed guns to take all three alleged robbers into custody. 

The three were taken to the Missoula County Detention Center on robbery charges, and the truck was returned to Gowdy. But as law enforcement investigated the incident, inconsistencies started to emerge. 

Gowdy told officers that he'd picked up the three falsely accused people, known as FAP1, FAP2, and FAP3, at a gas station in Butte and was giving them a ride to Missoula. 

Then Gowdy said he felt "cold steel" against the back of his head as one of them told him they were taking his truck. He said he was dropped off on the side of the interstate. 

But the falsely accused people told a different story. FAP1 said Gowdy had agreed to give him the truck in exchange for bailing him out of the Toole County Jail on July 2. He said he and FAP2 gave a bondsman $200 and picked Gowdy up, then drove to Butte. FAP1 said that Gowdy then requested a ride to Missoula, which happened without incident, and he dropped Gowdy off at a family member's house near Russell Street. 

FAP1 said that video footage from Jackson's Gas Station at 1250 39th St. would corroborate his story. The footage showed all four people stopping for fuel and leaving without incident, documents state, contradicting Gowdy's story that he'd been kicked out on the interstate. 

The falsely accused persons were released, and Gowdy was arrested and charged. 

"The Defendant’s malicious false report of armed robbery caused a multitude of peace officers to descend with weapons at the ready on the Southgate Mall, thus endangering FAP1, FAP2, and FAP3 and disrupting the mall’s business operations," documents state. 

Gowdy's next court appearance is scheduled for Oct. 20 at 9 a.m. His bail was set at $250,000.