FORT COLLINS, Colo. — A man accused of impersonating a firefighter in order to steal gear from crews tackling a Colo. wildfire last weekend may face similar charges from an earlier fire.
Michael Maher, 30, posted photos of himself on Facebook in a yellow-and-green wildland firefighter uniform posing with Gov. John Hickenlooper and sitting in the pilot seat of a helicopter at the High Park Fire.
Police were called when a chief said Maher “appeared to have phony firefighter credentials” and was driving a silver Toyota Tacoma with a stolen government license.
It emerged this week that a radio recovered from his vehicle during the High Park arrest was allegedly stolen during the Lower North Fork fire, which burned near Conifer in March, according The Denver Post.
Police then found other gear — a chainsaw, ready-to-eat meals, PPE clothing and a blue-and-red light strip used on emergency vehicles — stored at Maher’s home, the article said.
Several other jurisdictions are investigating whether Maher be tied to missing equipment elsewhere in other fires, according to Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.