Power of the County · Episode 7 of 7 · 19 min
The Falcon's Cold War Escape to Idaho: A Spy's Bonners Ferry Hideout
Convicted spy Christopher Boyce broke out of federal prison in 1980 and vanished into the Idaho Panhandle, robbing banks and plotting to defect to the Soviet Union, with help from locals. The TRW analyst who sold satellite secrets to the KGB spent 19 months near Bonners Ferry before capture in 1981. He was a left-disillusioned defector, yet the same remote country sheltered him as it had the Posse and the Aryan Nations.
Who's who
- Christopher Boyce+1 more episodeTRW analyst who sold satellite secrets to the KGB; escaped in 1980
- Andrew Daulton LeeBoyce's friend who carried the stolen film to the Soviet embassy
Where it happens
- Bonners Ferry, Idaho+1 more episodeWhere Boyce hid as 'Anthony Edward Lester'
- Lompoc, CaliforniaFederal penitentiary Boyce escaped
- Port Angeles, WashingtonWhere U.S. Marshals captured him
- Mexico City+2 more episodesSite of the Soviet embassy where film was delivered
Timeline
- 1974-1975Boyce and Lee sell satellite secrets to the KGB
- January 1977Lee arrested in Mexico City and both convicted
- January 21, 1980Boyce escapes Lompoc
- August 21, 1981U.S. Marshals capture Boyce in Port Angeles
- 2002Boyce paroled
Still debated
The documented help came from specific individuals rather than the community as a whole. The espionage tradecraft details are drawn from public reporting and the Marshals' account, not adjudicated records.