Ex-fire chief sentenced for receiving bogus reimbursements

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- A former volunteer fire chief who got about $46,000 by submitting fraudulent invoices and receipts for reimbursement is now headed to prison.

Acting Attorney General John Hoffman says 52-year-old Eugene Spiegel received a five-year sentence Monday. He also must pay $46,177 in restitution and is barred from holding public employment.

Spiegel had pleaded guilty in June to conspiracy.

His 20-year-old son, Jacob, was also accused of receiving fraudulent reimbursements. But Hoffman said Jacob Spiegel was allowed to enter a pretrial program Monday after he admitted receiving $1,275 in reimbursements for training that he did not attend.

Spiegel and his son served with the Seaville Fire and Rescue Company, which uncovered irregularities in training and clothing reimbursements through an internal review and reported the records to authorities.