Excerpts from ChicagoTribune.com: A 19-year-old firefighter trainee and college student from Ford Heights has been indicted in a Cook County court on three counts of arson for allegedly setting fires to three vacant homes in the village. Kaumain Allen was arrested last month after a Cook County sheriff’s officer conducting a routine check at a vacant house on 15th Street spotted him. According to the officer, Allen claimed that the fire department had sent him to retrieve equipment left behind, but investigators later confirmed that the fire department had neither authorized his presence nor sent him there. Local authorities have been investigating a series of fires in Ford Heights since October, including 11 in abandoned homes and two vehicle fires. While the sheriff’s office and state fire marshal’s office have not yet linked Allen to any other incidents, he is currently facing charges for the three fires he is accused of starting. He also faces charges for two more fires: one on February 9 at the 1500 block of Congress Lane, where he is said to have poured gasoline on debris and set it ablaze using a lighter. The second fire occurred on March 3, when Allen allegedly used a propane torch to ignite a road flare and threw it onto a pile of debris, causing a structure to catch fire. If convicted, Allen could face between three and seven years in prison for each charge, with the possibility of consecutive sentences for the three separate incidents, according to Campbell. Ford Heights Fire Department Captain Edward Griffin stated that the department had no prior issues with Allen, who began as a volunteer trainee earlier this year and remained active until his arrest. This case has raised concerns within the community about safety and accountability, especially given that the suspect was an active firefighter trainee. Local officials are now working closely with law enforcement to ensure that such incidents do not happen again. Meanwhile, the investigation into the other fires continues, and more details may emerge in the coming weeks. Multi - Line Bag Vacuum Feeding Machine Wenzhou Huaze Machinery Co.,Ltd , https://www.multihz.com