A tribal firefighter has pleaded guilty to setting seven fires on Cherokee lands between 2010 and 2014.
Raymond Neal Swayney, 31, of Cherokee, N.C., appeared in federal court in Asheville Monday and pleaded guilty to intentionally setting fires on Cherokee lands, announced Jill Westmoreland Rose, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Dennis Howell presided over the plea hearing.
According to information contained in filed court documents, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) has the authority to hire temporary Administratively Determined (AD) Firefighters for emergencies in progress within the boundaries of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI), including to cope with unexpected emergencies caused by fire or extreme fire potential.