Swanzey man sentenced for helping commit arson in Troy

Oct. 09--A Swanzey man was sentenced to six months in jail Wednesday for pouring accelerants on a commercial wrecker that was then torched to collect the insurance money.

However, Craig Fields, 32, is likely to serve that time on electronic monitoring with home confinement and not behind bars. Judge John C. Kissinger Jr. ordered Fields to report to the Cheshire County jail in Keene in one week to be fitted for the device. Fields is out of jail on bail until then.

He pleaded guilty Wednesday in Cheshire County Superior Court in Keene to a felony count of accomplice to arson in connection with the Jan. 26, 2012, fire at his then-employer J & J Auto Body of Troy.

In exchange for his guilty plea, prosecutors dismissed an alternative count of accomplice to arson and one count of insurance fraud.

Assistant Cheshire County Attorney John M. Gasaway Jr. told the court that Fields moved a 1987 Peterbilt wrecker that January day from the property of Jay Coppo, 50, of Troy to the auto shop next door. Coppo owns the auto shop with his sister Jodi Anne Champney, 45, of Winchester.

Fields' coworker Christopher Pratt, 32, of Gilsum is then accused of starting the fire with the intent of defrauding the insurer of the truck, Gasaway said.

Pratt is charged with two counts of arson and one count of accomplice to insurance fraud between Jan. 26, 2012, and May 11, 2012. A plea and sentencing hearing is scheduled for Nov. 4 in his case.

Coppo and Champney were indicted last week by a Cheshire County grand jury on two counts each of insurance fraud in connection with the same incident. The pair is accused of concealing information from the insurer of the truck that the damage was intentional, according to indictments.

The insurance claims totaled about $60,000, according to Gasaway.

Fields will be on probation for two years, after serving six months, either in jail or on electronic monitoring. He can petition the court to terminate his probation after one year, Kissinger said.

An additional six-month jail sentence is suspended for three years, pending good behavior.

Alyssa Dandrea can be reached at 352-1234, extension 1435, or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @ADandreaKS.

___

(c)2014 The Keene Sentinel (Keene, N.H.)

Visit The Keene Sentinel (Keene, N.H.) at www.sentinelsource.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services