A litany of complaints levied against St. Tammany Parish District 12 Fire Chief Stephen Krentel, whose wife was killed in a mysterious, high-profile slaying in July, will be the subject of a full scale investigation by the district's board of commissioners, a civil service panel determined Monday (Nov. 27).
The fire district's three-member Civil Service Board voted unanimously to remand allegations against Krentel - including him having an inappropriate relationship with a subordinate and stealing air conditioning units from the agency - to the commission. The five-member commission, made up of citizens appointed by St. Tammany Parish government, is responsible for overseeing the operation of the fire agency that provides service to more than 25,000 people and 1,200 businesses in the Covington area.