A former assistant Utah attorney general has been accused of deceiving authorities by denying that he was working full time for both the state and the federal government at the same time.

Federal prosecutors charged Richard David Wyss earlier this month with one count of making a false statement. Prosecutors say Wyss made several misrepresentations about his employment to cover up the fact that he had a full-time state job and a full-time federal job from September 2002 to October 2007.

According to a charging document, Wyss was legal counsel for the federal Transportation Security Administration (TSA) during those five years and also continued to be employed by the state of Utah.

Wyss was hired in 1988 as an assistant attorney general for the Utah Attorney General's Office and headed the agency's Division of Governmental Affairs before he left in September 2003. He then went to work full time as legal counsel and budget director for the state Department of Public Safety, federal prosecutors say.

They say Wyss told federal authorities that he was working only 18 to 22 hours a week at the state job; submitted time sheets falsely representing that he worked only part time for DPS; and understated his state salary to give the false impression he worked only part time at that job.

Wyss is scheduled to appear in court on Dec. 1 for a change-of-plea hearing, meaning he likely will plead guilty to the charge. He faces up to five years in prison.

pmanson@sltrib.com