KELLOGG WOMAN CONVICTED OF IMPERSONATING A FEDERAL AGENT

Wendi Leigh Harris, 41, of Kellogg, Idaho, was convicted yesterday in federal court for detaining two men while impersonating a federal agent.

During the three-day trial, the jury heard evidence that on January 7, 2008, Harris had a meeting with two men after claiming that she needed their help to investigate a North Idaho business for fraud and theft. During the meeting, Harris told the men that she was the lead investigator in a federal case working with agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. She also claimed that her investigation was authorized by a current U.S. Bankruptcy Judge. When the men questioned her authority and credentials, Harris flashed them a badge and told one of the men that he would be arrested if he impeded the investigation and if details of their meeting were leaked to the public.

After the men reported their meeting with Harris to authorities, the Idaho State Police and the FBI opened an investigation into the incident. On February 26, 2008, Idaho State Police detectives and deputies with the Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office served a search warrant on her residence. During their search, detectives located a badge and numerous notes Harris had written as she interviewed the men while posing as a federal agent.

On Thursday, the jury returned its verdict finding Harris guilty of two counts of impersonating a federal agent.

Sentencing will be set for sometime in December, 2008, at the federal court house in Coeur d’Alene. Harris faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison and a $250,000 fine.