FBI now has Flanagan case

NEWPORT — The investigation into former Metaline Town Clerk Kelly R. Flanagan, who is accused of stealing from the Town of Metaline, has been wrapped up and forwarded to the FBI, Pend Oreille County Sheriff Glenn Blakeslee said.

“The case has been finished for about a week or so,” Blakeslee said. It has been sent to the FBI for review. They can either take the entire case, part of the case or send the whole case back to the county for criminal charges.

Flanagan, 54, was arrested by the Sheriff’s Office June 30 after coming in for an interview. She was alleged to have stolen as much as $100,000 when she had a first appearance in court July 1. She was released on her own recognizance by District Court Judge Robin McCroskey after prosecuting attorney Samantha Brookman didn’t ask for bail, citing Flanagan’s relative lack of criminal history. Brookman said Flanagan only had a first-degree identity theft conviction. Flanagan has not been arraigned in Pend Oreille County Superior Court.

Metaline Mayor Pete Daggett said the Town of Ione has agreed to loan Metaline $50,000.

“That will allow us to pay off some of our debts,” Daggett said. Metaline hasn’t received the money yet, he said, but he called the Ione Town Council’s vote to lend the money “pretty darn impressive.”

Newport City Administrator Abby Gribi has been helping with some of the clerk duties.

“You really learn who your friends are,” Daggett said of the help Metaline has received.

He said the town has been without liability insurance since the first of the year because premiums hadn’t been paid.

Daggett said he hadn’t been paid since 2023. He said he didn’t know what happened to the town’s money.

“I’m leaving it up to the auditor and the courts,” he said.

Daggett said the entire situation has shaken his trust.

“I think the betrayal of trust has affected everybody,” he said. “It’s a hard thing to deal with. I don’t know if I trust myself anymore.”

He said the town will be dealing with the loss for at least the next year.

According to the probable cause statement read in court, a Pend Oreille County commissioner was looking into why the county had not been paid for road work done in 2024 that would have been paid for by a grant. Several attempts were made to get hold of Flanagan about the money but failed, with the excuse that, “The check is in the mail.”

Daggett asked Blakeslee to have Flanagan removed from City Hall after Daggett and mayor pro-tem Janet Sullivan found supporting evidence of fraud made through the city’s bank accounts, according to the probable cause statement. They believed that the charges were made only by Flanagan.

The Pend Oreille County Sheriff’s deputy investigating the case then got the statements of the town’s credit card, money market account and checking account. After looking through each month’s statement starting in May 2019, it appeared the mismanagement was in the area of $100,000, according to the probable cause statement. The credit card was in Flanagan’s name, as was the town checking account.

In May 2025, there were charges made for an obituary, to Dish Network, Amazon, Costco, to Flanagan and to Evergreen Community College.

Daggett and Sullivan confirmed these purchases were not authorized by the town of Metaline, according to the probable cause statement. Those were not the only charges in question, just a small amount of what was allegedly fraudulently purchased.

Blakeslee said he suspects the FBI will treat it like it did the embezzlement case for the Town of Cusick. In that case the FBI investigated and referred the case to the U.S. Attorney’s office. Former town clerk and councilmember Luke Michael Servas was indicted by a federal grand jury and pleaded guilty to bank fraud. He is currently serving a 51-month federal prison sentence for stealing more than $277,000.

Flanagan was a past Metaline Woman of the Year and was involved in several community activities, including serving as the head of the Pend Oreille Region Tourism Alliance, which puts on the Bigfoot Festival.