PF sex offender sent to federal prison

COEUR d’ALENE — A Post Falls man received a nearly six-year federal prison sentence for failure to register as a sex offender and possession of a stolen firearm.

U.S. District Judge Amanda K. Brailsford sentenced 63-year-old Eric L. Heartburg to 71 months in federal prison, just shy of six years, for the crimes, according to a news release issued Tuesday by the U.S. States Attorney’s Office.

After completing his prison sentence, Heartburg will spend five years on supervised release. He must continue to register as a sex offender.

Heartburg was convicted of child molestation in the first degree in Spokane County in 1992, according to court records. As a result of his conviction, he was required to register as a sex offender. Beginning in 2020, prosecutors said, Heartburg “absconded” from sex offender registration.

In early 2023, Heartburg reportedly moved from Spokane to Post Falls, into a home with two women and four children. He remained in that home until his arrest Feb. 25, according to a news release.

When searching Heartburg’s room, police reportedly found a pistol that had been stolen from one of his roommates.

U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit said the charges were the result of a joint investigation of the Idaho State Police and U.S. Marshals service.

“Cooperation between federal and state partners is critical to ensuring that sex offenders who fail to register are identified and brought to justice,” Hurwit said.