Documents: Brandon man forged water quality reports

A Brandon man is facing felony charges after authorities say he fabricated water quality results that caused panic in the community last summer.

A Minnehaha County Grand Jury earlier this week indicted Kristopher Gagnon, 47, on a pair of forgery charges, a result of a Division of Criminal Investigation's months-long investigation into the origins of documents posted on a social media page in July 2019 that asserted the city of Brandon's tap water wasn't safe to drink.

The city of Brandon in early August held a press conference in an attempt to dispel concerns raised after the Facebook page "City of Brandon SD, The Dirt" published what city administrator Bryan Read said were fabricated documents showing a water sample taken from a Brandon home and tested had radium levels higher than EPA standards.

The laboratory report had redacted information about the company that conducted the testing, including its name and location, as well as the identity of the customer who hired the water quality assessment done.

More:Water wars: Falsified quality report stokes alarm in Brandon

The city of Brandon and the South Dakota Department of Health looked into the origins of the water quality report and determined Rapid City-based Mid Continent Testing Labs was contracted by a private customer to conduct the testing, but the report shared online didn't match the report sent to the customer, Read said at the August press conference.

Mid Continent Testing Labs Inc. owner Dean Aurand confirmed to the Argus Leader at that time that it had conducted the testing, but the results posted on the social media site had been altered.

It's unclear if Gagnon is affiliated with the Facebook page  "City of Brandon SD, The Dirt," which does not list its creator. Operators of the page have repeatedly declined to share their identities or speak on record with the Argus Leader.

"The City of Brandon is aware that Mr. Kris Gagnon has been arrested pursuant to a grand jury indictment related to alleged forged water test results that were posted on a Facebook site," a news release issued this week said praising the South Dakota Attorney General and the South Dakota Department of Criminal Investigation for investigating the matter. "The City of Brandon appreciates the work done by these two agencies in the matter."

The South Dakota Attorney General's Office is prosecuting the case.