WHATCOM COUNTY, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – Allegations of official misconduct have led to the arrest of a former Whatcom County employee.

Whatcom County Sheriff’s spokesperson Deb Slater says that their investigation began during a search warrant for an unrelated drug investigation last fall.

A cell phone recovered from a suspect vehicle contained messages between the suspect and a county employee, who are related. Communications between the two revealed that the suspect asked their relative to be “on the lookout” for certain individuals.

The county employee later conducted unauthorized searches on those people within a restricted system.

She was arrested on Thursday, Jan. 8, on suspicion of criminal trespass and official misconduct.