5 Boise officers ‘cleared’ of wrongdoing in investigations into 2021 shootings
Five Boise police officers have been “cleared” by investigators for their part in two shootings from last year — including the high-profile shooting of an East African refugee.
Boise police spokesperson Haley Williams told the Idaho Statesman by email that the Critical Incident Task Force investigations were completed, and all the officers were cleared for the shootings of Mohamud Hassan Mkoma and Forrest Moore.
Williams said she was not sure of the exact dates the investigations were completed since they were “handled by other agencies.”
Both police shootings took place in the summer last year. In June 2021, three Boise police officers fired 20 rounds at Mkoma, with five of the bullets hitting him, after police alleged Mkoma abducted his teenage son. Roughly a month after Mkoma was shot, Boise police officers shot and killed 31-year-old Moore.
Aside from the CITF investigation, the Boise Police Department also releases reports from its Office of Police Accountability. The accountability reports mostly “exonerated” police in both cases, though two of the officers involved in Mkoma’s shooting were criticized for not activating their body cameras.
Shooting of refugee sparks backlash
The shooting of Mkoma sparked backlash from Boise’s Bantu refugee community members, who asked authorities to release body camera footage — which never happened. The three officers who were involved in the shooting were Steve Martinez, Aaron Hartje and Jeff Ridgeway.
The Garden City Police Department conducted the CITF investigation into Mkoma’s shooting, then passed it off to the Twin Falls Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for review, according to previous reporting and Emily Lowe, a spokesperson for the Ada County Prosecutor’s Office.
Mkoma is still facing six felony charges, including multiple counts of lewd conduct with a child. A psychological evaluation found that Mkoma was mentally unfit in October 2021 — and over a year later, he is still unable to stand trial. He is expected to appear in court on Jan. 23 to discuss his status.
The Statesman has submitted a records request for documents related to Mkoma’s investigation, though his criminal case is still pending.
Moore shot and killed in July 2021
Officers Keith Montague and Todd Sigler shot Moore on July 24 near 21st Street and Pleasanton Avenue after police responded to a report that alleged Moore was staying at a property under construction.
According to the accountability report, when Montague and Sigler discovered Moore, he appeared to be sleeping underneath a piece of cardboard. One of the officers announced their presence and pulled the piece of cardboard off of him, the report said.
Moore then pointed what authorities later determined was a semi-automatic BB gun at the officers , causing the officers to believe there was an “immediate threat to their life” and fatally shoot Moore, according to a previous news release from the department.
Montague and Sigler were cleared by the task force, which was led by the Ada County Sheriff’s Office and reviewed by the Valley County Prosecutor’s Office. Montague resigned from the department in February 2022, according to a list of resignations obtained by the Statesman.
The Statesman has requested the full CITF report into Moore’s shooting. The Boise Police Department wants $743.77 for the completed investigation.
This story was originally published December 27, 2022 at 4:00 AM.
