Idaho
Idaho man gets 30 years in prison for ‘purposely’ trying to spread HIV through sex
An Idaho man has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for “purposely” trying to spread HIV through sexual contact with both men and teenage boys, prosecutors announced.
Alexander Louie, 34, was sentenced for a felony charge of transferring body fluids containing the HIV, among other charges, the Ada County Prosecutor’s Office said in a news release Monday. Ada County District Judge Derrick O’Neill sentenced Louie to 30 years in prison on Friday, in which he has to serve 16 years before he is eligible for parole.
“Your conduct would be the Webster’s definition of a predator,” O’Neill said during the Louie’s sentencing.
Louie admitted that he had sexual intercourse with 30 to 50 different men and teenage boys, including a 16-year-old, and lied to his victims about his HIV status, according to the Ada County Prosecutor’s Office.
Investigators found that Louie, who is HIV positive, was not taking his medication and that he was “purposely having sexual contact with both men and teenage boys in hopes to transfer HIV to them,” the Ada County Prosecutor’s Office said.
The investigation led to Louie pleading guilty to three felonies, including sexual battery of a minor, enticing a child through the internet, and transferring body fluids containing HIV, according to online court records.
“This defendant’s repeated and egregious offenses negatively impacted many people in our community,” Ada County Prosecutor Jan Bennetts said in a statement. “I want to thank the Ada County Sheriff’s Detective and my trial team. Their hard work on this case ensured Mr. Louie was brought to justice in order to protect our community from his predatory and dangerous conduct.”
Idaho man had online sexual conversations with victims
The investigation began as a child enticement case in August 2023 and later expanded into “dozens of charges” against Louie, the Ada County Prosecutor’s Office previously said.
Louie was arrested in September 2023 during an internet sting operation and initially charged with multiple felonies for having illegal sexual contact with a 16-year-old last year and not telling the teenager that he was HIV positive, according to the Ada County Prosecutor’s Office.
Detectives arrested Louie after he began an “online sexual conversation with who he believed was a 15-year-old boy,” but was an undercover sheriff’s detective, the Ada County Prosecutor’s Office said. Authorities took him into custody at an arranged meeting place near a local high school.
Louie had sent naked photos to the undercover detective during their online conversations and said he was “going to videotape their encounter,” the Ada County Prosecutor’s Office added.
Following his arrest, investigators discovered evidence of other victims, including the 16-year-old boy who authorities determined had illegal sexual contact with Louie three times in September. Investigators also found evidence that Louie met the victim through online messaging apps and that Louie stopped taking his HIV medication on purpose before their encounter.
AMMON – Two fires in the Ammon area have been extinguished, thanks to the massive response of multiple fire agencies.
Two fires started in separate neighborhoods Friday night as a result of people lighting fireworks. The first one started around 5:45 p.m. on Delaware Avenue near the St. Clair Estates subdivision. Idaho Falls Fire Department spokeswoman Hayli Egbert tells EastIdahoNews.com it started in a field next to a house in the area.
Although the blaze was only about half an acre in size, firefighters battled it for about four and a half hours.
“We were able to catch it before any homes were affected,” Egbert says. “We were also able to avoid injuries.”
As firefighters were wrapping up, another fire started on Comish and High Willow Lane in the Comore Loma subdivision about four miles southwest.
The blaze quickly grew to about eight acres. John Tren posted several videos of the fire on the Life in Idaho Falls Facebook page.
“It got very, very close to several homes, but thankfully we had enough agencies out there that prevented the fire from reaching any houses,” says Egbert. “No civilians or firefighters were injured.”
The fire was out by about 1:30 a.m. Saturday, but firefighters had a brush truck on scene overnight to ensure there were no hot spots to start it up again.
It’s not clear whether anyone is being charged in connection with the fire. EastIdahoNews.com is awaiting additional information from Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office.
Six fire agencies were involved, including Idaho Falls Fire Department, Central Fire District in Jefferson County, Ucon Fire Department, Bonneville County Fire District 1, Shelley Fire Department and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. The Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office and Bonneville County Emergency Management Services were there as supporting agencies.
“It was all hands on deck,” Egbert says. “We had pretty much all resources expended trying to cover the fires that were going on.”
RELATED | Idaho Falls Fire Department urges fireworks safety after two vegetation fires
Earlier Saturday, the IFFD issued a joint news release on behalf of everyone involved to remind the public that “current conditions are dangerously dry” and that a single spark has the potential to cause major damage. Law enforcement and fire officials are urging the public to avoid using illegal fireworks until further notice and to attend professionally-managed fireworks shows, rather than light them off at home.
“Individuals found in violation of local fireworks ordinances are subject to citation and fines under local ordinances and may be held liable for the costs of any fire suppression efforts and property damage resulting from unlawful fireworks use,” the city of Idaho Falls says in a Saturday morning news release.
RELATED | Officials: Stop using illegal aerial fireworks before more fires ignite
Egbert reiterates the importance of being safe with fireworks this Fourth of July.
“With last night’s incident, if something of the same size had occurred across town, we may not have had the resources to handle it all,” she says. “It really took all hands on deck to (put it out) and keep everyone safe.”
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Courtesy Zach Zaugg
AMMON — As the community celebrates the Fourth of July with numerous aerial fireworks ringing through the night, a fire has broken out near the Ammon foothills.
According to WatchDuty, a wildfire mapping application, a fire has been reported near South High Willow Lane, and another near East Comish Drive and East 65th South.
WatchDuty watchers report that forward movement of both fires has been stopped, and crews are working on containment.
EastIdahoNews.com has reached out to Bonneville County Fire District 1 and is waiting for more information about the fire.
EastIdahoNews.com will update this story once more information becomes available.
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IDAHO FALLS — The CEO of the Greater Idaho Falls Chamber resigned Friday amid allegations of misappropriation of funds from a local podcast.
According to a social media post posted Friday from the Greater Idaho Falls Chamber of Commerce, the board of directors accepted the resignation of Paul Baker as chief executive officer.
“We thank Paul for his years of service to the Chamber and wish him well in his future endeavors,” says the post.
The post says that Baker will continue assisting the chamber in a transitional capacity for the next few weeks “to facilitate an orderly leadership transition.”
We have reached out to Paul Baker for comment, and have not received a response. If we hear back, we will update this article.
The resignations come after weeks of scrutiny from a local podcast, IFAF, hosted by Mike Nelson and Karley Morgan. In multiple episodes, the podcasters read questions from an alleged whistleblower who claims that Baker may have misappropriated funds from the chamber, among other allegations.
RELATED | IFAF podcasters reflect on more than two years of rebellious recordings
EastIdahoNews.com has been watching this closely; some facts have been verified, others have not been or appear to be factually incorrect. We will continue investigating and update if we learn more.
“To date, the Board has not found any evidence that Chamber funds have been misappropriated. The Board remains committed to the Chamber’s mission of serving its members and supporting a strong business community,” says the post. “Chamber operations will continue uninterrupted as we move forward with a leadership transition and an independent audit.”
As of Friday, no criminal charges have been filed against Baker for any of the allegations.
The podcast has also linked Baker to Cristie Stone, the former President of the Portneuf Valley Soccer Club, who was recently charged with allegedly embezzling $219,000 from the club. Baker was previously the club’s executive director. Numerous social media posts also indicate that Baker and Stone have been in a romantic relationship.
Local authorities have not indicated Baker is involved in Stone’s embezzlement case.
RELATED | Former president of Portneuf Valley Soccer Club embezzled over $219K, police say
The board says it appreciates the continued support of its members, partners, and the community and will provide additional information “as appropriate.”
EastIdahoNews.com will update when we learn more.
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