A 20-year-old Kalispell man has been sentenced to 50 years at the Montana State Prison, with 10 years suspended, for the brutal killing of a homeless man in 2023, Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen announced Friday.
Kaleb Elijah Fleck pleaded guilty in February to one felony count of deliberate homicide in the death of Scott Bryan. The incident occurred in June 2023, when officers responded to a report outside a Kalispell gas station and found Bryan unconscious and severely injured.
According to court documents, Bryan suffered extensive trauma, including deep lacerations, crushed facial bones, and visible exposed bone. Witness testimony and video evidence later showed Fleck discussing the assault while Bryan’s motionless body lay nearby.
“This was a senseless and violent attack that cost a man his life,” Attorney General Knudsen said. “Thanks to strong investigative work and dedicated prosecutors, justice has been served.”
In addition to the prison sentence, Fleck has been ordered to pay restitution and will be required to register as a violent offender upon his release.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant Attorneys General Caitlin Creighton and Meghann Paddock, with support from the Flathead County Attorney’s Office. The investigation was led by the Kalispell Police Department with assistance from the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office.
By: DNU staff