Sagle resident is accused of lewd conduct

SANDPOINT — A Sagle man has been arrested for allegedly engaging in lewd conduct with a minor.

Wade Alexzander Best made an initial appearance in Bonner County Magistrate Court on Friday via video link with the jail. Judge Lori Meulenberg set Best’s bail at $100,000 and appointed a public defender to represent him, court records show. The court also entered an order forbidding Best from having contact with the alleged victim.

Best, 46, molested a girl last month, when she was between the ages of 4-5, a criminal complaint alleges.

The allegations against Best emerged while he was being investigated for an alleged sex offense involving an 8-year-old child which dates back to last year, according to a probable cause affidavit.

The new allegations surfaced after the younger girl disclosed that she had seen Best naked and had shared a bed with him while both were only partially clothed, the affidavit said. The girl’s disclosure prompted the involvement of sheriff’s investigators and the Idaho Department of Health & Welfare.

The girl’s mother made a confrontation call, a surreptitiously recorded phone call meant to elicit incriminating statements, in which Best vaguely admitted something had occurred but assured her it wouldn’t happen again, the affidavit said. Best subsequently admitted the girl touched his genitals and used his genitals to touch her, according the affidavit.

Best also admitted during the call that he had engaged in similar misconduct with another girl, the affidavit said.

A preliminary hearing in the case is set for April 17.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.