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A former Macklin firefighter was given 18 months of probation and 200 hours of community service for lighting a number of hay bales on fire near Macklin and Evesham last July.
Logan Sieben received his sentence on Monday in Unity, after pleading guilty to a single charge of arson causing property damage in January.
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Macklin fire chief Justin Bast said he was encouraged the judge had taken an extra month to review the information provided, as Sieben was originally scheduled to be sentenced in June.
Bast said he hoped to see a more serious sentence for Sieben, such as restitution or house arrest.
“(If) that’s what the court feels is correct, we have to live with that,” Bast said.
The fire chief said it felt like a “gut shot” when he found out somebody who once wore the fire department’s uniform was behind the crime.
Sieben “was a homegrown boy,” Bast said, adding that he coached him in hockey and knew him while he was growing up.
“You know somebody and don’t ever think that something like this is going to happen,” he said.
Moving forward, Bast said the fire department will check its applicants more thoroughly, making use of character references and criminal record checks.
He added that he is proud of the fire department employees who helped identify Sieben as the man behind the hay bale fires.
Sieben was arrested in August of 2024 after police reviewed surveillance footage related to a fire, and he was subsequently let go from his position with the fire department.
