ROSCOMMON COUNTY -- A Houghton Lake man was sentenced to one year jail on felony charges for intentionally setting multiple wildfires in Roscommon County on three separate dates.

Howard LeRoy was sentenced to one year of jail, followed by 24 months probation, $648 in fines and costs, and was ordered to pay a total of over $13,000 in restitution.

The charges stemmed from a DNR investigation when they noticed a trend in certain unexplained, suspicious fires. Leroy was originally charged with setting seven fires in Roscommon County.

In a press release from the Department of Natural Resources, Scott Heather, DNR state forest fire supervisor says that it's important to investigate and prosecute offenses such as these because of "costs in timber and habitat damage and suppressing the fires."

LeRoy originally pled guilty to these charges in February.