PEORIA, Ill. — Local investigators were recently honored for their work on an arson case that resulted in a Mt. Vernon man pleading guilty in federal court to multiple offenses.

The Illinois chapter of the International Association of Arson Investigators recognized members of the 2015 Arson and Fraud Task Force for their work solving multiple crimes of arson and fraud against Richard Pigg.

Pigg, the former president of a local bank, was indicted and pleaded guilty to three counts of arson and six counts of mail fraud in federal court. He’s due to be sentenced next month.

The investigation was broken open by Mt. Vernon Fire Department Arson Investigator Shane Emrich, who reported his findings to then Detective Captain Jeff Bullard with the Mt. Vernon Police Department, who put together a task force consisting of MVFD, MVPD, the Sheriff’s Office, State Fire Marshal’s Office Arson Investigation Division, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

Local investigators present in Peoria to receive the outstanding team performance awards included Investigator Shane Emrich – who also received a separate award for his individual work on the case — current Sheriff Jeff Bullard, JCSO Detective Captain Bobby Wallace, retired JCSO Detective Captain Scott Burge, Mt. Vernon Police Department Detective Vic Koontz, retired detective and now Jefferson County Coroner Roger Hayse, Detective Jeremy Reichert, then Detective Rodney Sweetin who is now Assistant Chief of Rend Lake College PD, then Detective Nathan Franklin, then Detective Derek DePoister, and then Detective Justin Haney.