NEWS

Franklin man pleads guilty to setting wildfires

Abigail Margulis
amargulis@citizen-times.com

ASHEVILLE - A Macon County man pleaded guilty Wednesday in federal court to setting wildfires in October on U.S. Forest Service land, according to court documents.

A wildfire in the Brown Mountain area of Pisgah National Forest.

Keith Mann, 49, of Franklin, was arrested in November on one count of destroying real property of the United States by means of fire, according to a federal criminal complaint filed in the case.

During the fall, from October to December, Western North Carolina experienced its largest-ever recorded season of forest fires – mostly set by arsonists and careless human activity, according to forest service and law enforcement experts.

Twenty-seven fires burned throughout the Nantahala National Forest. They were whipped into a frenzy by an exceptionally dry and warm summer and fall.

Only one fire – the Boteler, which burned more than 9,000 acres – was caused by lightning strike.

One wildfire reported on Oct. 27 in Macon County on Board Tree Road, also known as U.S. Forest Service Road 388, within the Nantahala National Forest was included in the allegations in the affidavit filed with the criminal complaint against Mann. The fire was named Grape Cove.

Court documents state the initial investigation of the fire determined that it was set intentionally. Additional investigation revealed that five other fires had been set in close proximity to the Grape Cove Fire, however they appeared to have gone out on their own.

While investigating these small fires, law enforcement located several wooden matches, court documents state. U.S. Forest Service firefighters conducted suppression of the wildfire, which burned about 15 acres.

On Nov. 22, a wildfire was reported at the end of U.S. Forest Service Road 763, commonly referred to as Jones Creek Road, by someone who identified himself as Keith Mann, according to a factual basis filed with the court.

Firefighters responded and suppressed the fire. The fire, which was contained at approximately 1 acre, was named Jones Creek. Law enforcement then learned a suspicious vehicle, identified as a midsized Chevrolet pickup, had been observed in the area.

Keith Eugene Mann

The next day, law enforcement officers returned to the site. While there, they observed a small cardboard box at the origin of the fire, with numerous burned wooden matches next to the box.

On the same day, investigators identified the caller who placed the call to Macon County 911 to report the second fire as the defendant, Keith Mann. They contacted Mann, who admitted to setting the fires on Board Tree Road and Jones Creek Road.

He was taken into custody Nov. 28 and appeared in federal court in Asheville Nov. 29.

In court documents, Mann said he "wanted to see something burn," adding that his wife recently left him and he didn't have "much to live for."

He made an appearance Wednesday and entered a guilty plea, according to court documents.

On the document Mann signed to enter his guilty plea the final question asked: "Do you have questions, statements, or comments to make about anything brought up or discussed in the course of the proceeding?"

In response Mann wrote, "I need some help," and then signed his name at the bottom of the document.

Mann has not been sentenced, but he could face a mandatory penalty of five years and a maximum of 20 years in prison, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.