‘What I did was wrong:’ Ex-Idaho prosecutor ordered to pay $10,000 in restitution

BOISE (Idaho Statesman) – One of Idaho’s most controversial former lawyers has been sentenced to pay $10,000 in restitution by 2026 and sentenced to 30 days in jail.

John Bujak, 53, a former Canyon County prosecutor who has faced multiple legal challenges in the last 10 years, pleaded guilty in December to stealing more than $10,000 from a family member, according to court documents obtained by the Idaho Statesman.

Bujak was initially charged with grand theft and misappropriation of personal identifying info for purchases or credit valued over $300 — both felonies. The misappropriation felony was dismissed, according to online court records.

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“What I did was wrong,” Bujak, who represented himself, said Friday at his sentencing hearing.

He said the state’s punishment was minor and that his actions weren’t justified. The two initial felonies could have earned Bujak up to five years in prison.

Ada County District Judge James Cawthon choose to uphold the terms of the plea agreement Friday. Aside from the restitution payments, Bujak is expected to spend 30 days in jail within the next six months and be placed on a five-year probation. He was also served a no-contact order against the younger family member that will last until 2026.

Bujak was placed on a withheld judgment and will be on five-year probation during that time, according to court documents. Under the terms of a withheld judgment, the defendant is never actually convicted of a crime, but will likely face similar terms as a guilty plea.

Cawthon agreed to grant Bujak a withheld judgment, which in Idaho law means his guilty plea will not be recorded as a conviction as long as he completes the terms of his sentencing successfully.

During his probation, he is allowed to continue working as a truck driver outside the state so he can make restitution payments.

During the hearing, Ada County Deputy Prosecutor Joshua Haws played a roughly 30-minute audio clip, which one of Bujak’s family members recorded. Throughout the recording, Bujak speaks about his financial troubles and admits to stealing the money from a family member.

“To admit it, is to admit that I’ve become somebody I don’t want to become,” Bujak said in the recording.

In August 2019, the Meridian Police Department began an investigation into the theft after officers responded to a fraud report, police said. The family member told police that Bujak stole $10,000 over a two-year period.

“The victim reported that they had been sending money transfers to Bujak with the understanding that it was going into an IRA, but the funds were never put into an IRA,” according to then-spokesperson Stephany Galbreaith of the Meridian police.

Bujak admits during the recording that he never set up the IRA. He also admits to taking a family member’s wallet.

The family member also told police in 2019 about receiving phone calls from a collection agency about a loan the family member never took out., police said. The family member added that Bujak used the family member’s personal information and took out a cash loan of about $1,600, police said.

“This was all about Mr. Bujak,” Haws said. “It’s about his pride, his ego. That he had made good money in the past … and he couldn’t live up to the fact that he was going through hard times financially.”

Bujak said Friday that his only complaint against the plea agreement is the no-contact.

“What I did nearly cost me my family, and even though it didn’t cost me my family entirety, it cost me a relationship” (with the family member).

Bujak has come under scrutiny before for alleged financial crimes. Between 2012 and 2014 he stood trial five times on felony charges, though no jury found him guilty.

In 2010, Bujak resigned as Canyon County prosecutor after allegations that he misused public funds. One jury acquitted Bujak in that case, while two others were unable to come to an agreement.

The former prosecutor pleaded guilty in 2013 to contempt of court for violating a judge’s discovery order. In 2017, he tried to have that conviction overturned, but a judge ruled against him.

He was a 2014 candidate for Idaho governor as an independent.

Bujak resigned from the Idaho State Bar in 2015 and has not renewed his license to practice law, according to State Bar records. He was able to request reinstatement after January 2020, the Idaho Statesman previously reported.