WASHINGTON — A top Idaho corporate executive has pleaded guilty to insider trading after federal prosecutors say he secretly profited from advance knowledge of a major corporate acquisition.

Michael Smith, 48, of Eagle, served as president and chief operating officer of an Idaho-based company publicly traded on NASDAQ. According to court documents, Smith learned in 2024 that his company was about to be acquired, information that had not yet been made public and was protected under the company’s insider-trading policy.

Despite being barred from trading the stock, prosecutors say Smith used a brokerage account belonging to a close associate, identified only as “Individual-A,” to buy shares on July 26, 2024. When the acquisition was announced publicly on Aug. 7, the company’s stock price ju

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