Helena Men Charged in Rimini Shooting Death of Michael Anthony Biggs

Two Helena-area men face deliberate homicide charges after deputies discovered a body near Moose Creek Campground in the Rimini area. Lewis and Clark County authorities identified the victim as 39-year-old Michael Anthony Biggs and say investigators believe he suffered a gunshot wound to the back of the head.

Lewis and Clark County Dispatch received a call from a snowmobiler around 3:00 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 14, reporting what they believed were human remains. Deputies confirmed the discovery and secured the scene. Sheriff/Coroner Leo Dutton identified the victim on Tuesday afternoon, and investigators subsequently developed leads that produced criminal charges.

Robert Harvel, 32, and Brandon Michael Beckman, 36, have been charged with deliberate homicide, or in the alternative deliberate homicide by accountability. Court documents detail investigative steps that connected Biggs’s movements across the region. Detectives recovered a cell phone during a second search; calls and contacts from the phone allowed investigators to reach acquaintances of Biggs and to reconstruct his activities in the days before his death. Investigators say Biggs cashed a check in Great Falls earlier in the week and was gambling with Beckman at two East Helena casinos on Jan. 12.

Initial questioning produced differing accounts. Beckman admitted being in the Rimini area near where the body was found but denied involvement. Harvel allegedly told investigators that Beckman ordered him to drive both himself and the victim to the Rimini area to pick up methamphetamine, and that Harvel instead shot the victim and took his money. Justice of the Peace Michael Swingley set bond at $75,000 for both men. Harvel and Beckman are due back in District Court on Feb. 3 to enter pleas.

The case has local implications beyond the criminal charges. The use of a recovered cell phone to trace movements underscores the role of digital evidence in rural homicide investigations and the interagency work that spans Great Falls, East Helena, and Lewis and Clark County. The allegations also touch on issues residents have discussed in community forums: the intersection of drug activity, gambling, and transient cash flows between cities and county recreation areas.

For Lewis and Clark County residents, the case raises questions about safety in popular winter recreation corridors like the Rimini and Moose Creek Campground areas and about how law enforcement will communicate ongoing risks. The legal process will determine responsibility and motives; meanwhile, the community can expect further updates from the Lewis and Clark County Sheriff’s Office as detectives continue their work and as court proceedings move forward on Feb. 3.