A Georgia firefighter is accused of stealing a legal rifle silencer worth $1,600 from a person whose house had been on fire last month.
Logan Thomas Bowden, who had joined the Coweta County Fire Department through its recruitment program around a year ago, was charged with theft by taking in connection with the incident, WXIA-TV reports. The 24-year-old man was booked into Coweta County Jail after turning himself in Tuesday, according to the Newnan Times-Herald.
Authorities said the silencer's owner noticed it missing following a fire Jan. 29 at his Sharpsburg home. The silencer, which was legally purchased in 2013, had been attached to a rifle in a room above the home's garage.
“Public trust is important to Coweta County. We have a code of ethics that does not tolerate this kind of behavior,” Coweta County Fire Chief Pat Wilson told WXIA.
Bowden has been placed on leave from the department, and the termination process has begun, according to the TV station.
