Bovill man charged with lewd conduct

Latah County sheriff’s deputies arrested a 24-year-old Bovill, Idaho, man on suspicion of lewd conduct with a 15-year-old female Thursday afternoon and uncovered a variety of illegal drugs in the residence, a Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman said.

Deputies arrested Christopher A. Basting at his home on Alder Street in Bovill, said Darla Buckley, information officer for the Sheriff’s Office. Basting has been charged with two counts of lewd conduct with a minor child, involving sexual encounters with a 15-year-old at his home, Buckley said Friday. He is being held in the Latah County Jail on $10,000 bond.

Officers were granted a search warrant to seek corroborating evidence on the lewd conduct charges, but stopped and got a broader search warrant from a judge when they noticed drugs in Basting’s house, Buckley said. Police recovered methamphetamine, marijuana and morphine pills, the sheriff’s office said. Drug charges are pending.