Chinook man charged with impersonating IRS agent

A Chinook man accused of impersonating an IRS agent and stealing an estimated $34,500 worth of jewelry is scheduled to appear at an arraignment hearing Dec. 14, in which defendants typically enter their initial plea to the charges against them.

According to legal papers filed in Hill County District Court, on Sept. 1, a Havre resident let Jody Barnes into his home after Barnes told the man he wanted to know more about a truck the man had for sale.

Once inside, Barnes allegedly said he was an Internal Revenue Service agent and requested a tour of the home. The man said he showed Barnes around until they got to the bedroom, where the report says, Barnes took three diamond rings off the dresser. The man confronted Barnes and a physical altercation broke out. Barnes then allegedly ran out of the house and fled the scene in a gray Chevrolet pickup truck.

A Havre police officer arrived at the home and noticed bruising on the man's hand. The man described Barnes —about 6 feet tall and 200 pounds — and added that Barnes might have been carrying a weapon.

The man later provided appraisals of the rings, done by J.M. Donoven Design in Fine Jewelry, that Barnes is accused of stealing. The appraisal value of the rings came out to $16,500, $14,500, and $3,500.

Rings matching the description of those the man said were stolen were later located at First National Pawn in Great Falls. Officers were able to gather video footage of the rings being pawned.

Meanwhile, the man independently learned the identity of the person who allegedly stole his rings as Jody Barnes, authorities said. The officer working the case found a booking photo of Barnes and concluded that it was the same man who pawned the rings in the footage.

Barnes was identified and verified as having the rings by a man who said Barnes asked him to pawn rings that were left to him after his grandfather passed away.

The state filed the following charges based on the preceding report Nov. 18: one felony count of aggravated burglary, one felony count of theft, and one felony count of impersonation of a public servant.

Barnes' lawyer, Karen Alley, did not return calls asking for comment on the allegations.