WALLACE — A Shoshone County man has been charged with one count of rape and one count of lewd conduct with a child under 16 after investigators alleged he had multiple sexual encounters with a juvenile he met through a coworker. 

Tanner Lee, 21, is accused of having sexual contact with the victim on July 22 at two locations in Shoshone County, according to a probable cause affidavit. 

The investigation began July 30 after the victim disclosed the alleged assaults to family members, prompting a report to the Shoshone County Sheriff's Office. 

According to the affidavit filed by Shoshone County Sheriff's Office Detective Josey Stemrich, Lee worked with the victim's grandmother at the Snake Pit restaurant near Kingston. Investigators said Lee offered to take the victim swimming along the Coeur d'Alene River after work. 

The victim told detectives that while they were swimming, Lee touched her inappropriately before driving to a more secluded area along the river. There, she said, he engaged in sexual activity with her. 

Later that night, the pair allegedly communicated through text messages and phone calls before meeting again near Pine Creek Road, where a second sexual encounter occurred, according to investigators. 

Stemrich reviewed hundreds of deleted text messages recovered from the victim's cellphone. According to the affidavit, the messages contained romantic language, discussions about keeping the relationship secret and sexually explicit conversations. Investigators reported that more than 600 messages were exchanged between July 22 and July 25. 

A forensic interview conducted at the Children's Advocacy Center in Coeur d'Alene later provided additional details consistent with the victim's earlier statements, according to the report. 

Authorities also obtained search warrants for a red Dodge Ram that the victim said was used during the first encounter. According to the affidavit, investigators collected possible DNA evidence from the vehicle and located hairs described as being consistent with pubic hair during forensic processing. 

When detectives first questioned Lee during the execution of a search warrant, he denied having sexual contact with the victim and claimed sexually explicit messages had been sent to what he described as a random phone number. 

During a subsequent interview Aug. 21, Lee again denied physical contact before changing his account, according to the affidavit. 

Investigators wrote that after his cellphone was seized and a DNA sample was collected, Lee became emotional and told detectives he wanted to revise his statement. 

According to the affidavit, Lee admitted he had sexual contact with the victim twice on July 22 and acknowledged communicating with her through text messages. 

Court records show Lee was arrested Aug. 21 and booked into the Shoshone County Jail on two counts of rape. Prosecutors later charged him with one count of rape and one count of lewd conduct with a child under 16. 

The affidavit also contains a notable statement involving Lee's father, Raymond Lee. According to the report, after confessing to the allegations involving the victim, Tanner Lee made an additional admission, alleging that he, not his father, had engaged in inappropriate sexual conduct with a younger stepsibling years earlier. 

In 2023, Raymond Lee was charged with two counts of lewd conduct with a minor. He initially pleaded not guilty but later accepted a plea agreement in which prosecutors dismissed one charge and reduced the remaining charge to felony injury to a child in exchange for a guilty plea. 

Raymond Lee was released from prison earlier this month after completing the fixed portion of a 10-year sentence related to that case. 

According to the affidavit, Tanner Lee told his father he should be "exonerated" in the case that sent him to prison, claiming he had never previously admitted responsibility. 

The report states that Raymond Lee responded that "he and God forgave Tanner for what he did." 

Court records show Tanner Lee also has a prior criminal case. In 2023, he was charged with misdemeanor sexual battery. In that case, the court withheld judgment and imposed two years of supervised probation, fines, a psychosexual evaluation and treatment. 

During his first court appearance Aug. 24, Magistrate Judge Keisha Oxendine set bail at $80,000. 

Under Idaho law, the rape charge carries a minimum sentence of one year in prison and a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. The lewd conduct charge is punishable by up to life in prison. If convicted on both counts, Lee could face multiple life sentences. 

As of Monday, Lee remained in custody at the Shoshone County Jail.