Woman Sues Ex-Boss, Alleging Sexual Assault Lawsuit Claims Man Drugged, Raped And Sodomized Woman

A former Boundary County woman has accused her former boss of slipping drugs in her drinks, then raping and sodomizing her while she was unconscious.

A lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court this week against Richard Armstrong of Bonners Ferry.

The suit claims Armstrong, 46, raped, sodomized and sexually assaulted the woman who also lived with him for a short time.

Armstrong was served with court papers but could not be reached for comment. He works as a “transport agent” hauling troubled teenagers from their homes to rehabilitation and treatment programs.

He formerly was a foster care provider and started a transport company called Boundarylines. He hired the woman as a counselor, and she worked for him from 1993 until last April.

While the two worked together, Armstrong mixed a drug in the woman’s drink several times, waited for her to pass out and then sexually abused her, the suit alleges.

The woman’s attorney, Craig Mosman, said his client caught Armstrong crushing sleeping pills into her drink on one occasion.

The woman later was fired after she confronted Armstrong and refused to have sex with him, according to court documents.

Mosman claimed Armstrong has confessed to the rape, and he said the confession was tape-recorded. The woman apparently called Armstrong with a lawyer present and recorded the conversation without Armstrong knowing it. That is legal in Idaho.

“She told him she knew about being drugged and assaulted and asked Armstrong what he would call that,” Mosman said. “He said, ‘I would call it rape.”’

The woman, who since has moved to New Mexico, also is suing for sexual harassment, emotional distress and lost wages. The civil complaint also could prompt Boundary County authorities to file criminal charges against Armstrong.

Armstrong has two daughters and has lived in Boundary County since 1979. He formerly worked as a counselor for Rocky Mountain Academy, a private school for troubled youths in Bonners Ferry.

, DataTimes