East Idaho Fake Promoter Gets Eight Years in Prison

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (AP) — An Idaho Falls man who deceived an entertainment company into giving him money by promising to deliver big-name country music stars to southeastern Idaho has been sentenced to eight years in prison.

Thirty-four-year-old Ryan D. Thueson received the sentence Tuesday in 7th District Court.

He's also ordered to pay $228,500 in restitution following his guilty plea to grand theft. He'll be eligible for parole after two years.

Thueson promised Riverbend Communications he could bring Brad Paisley, Carrie Underwood, Lady Antebellum and others to perform in the area.

Riverbend gave Thueson money to be put into an escrow account to cover minimum payments to the performers.

But prosecutors say Thueson fabricated a story about working with a promoter, created fake emails and forged documents.

The money hasn't been recovered.