Man who admitted setting fire to several Indiana barns pleads guilty to 3 more arsons

WARSAW, Ind. (AP) — A man who admitted setting several barn fires in a northern Indiana county in 2021 pleaded guilty Thursday to setting three others in a neighboring county.

Joseph Hershberger, 43, entered the pleas to three counts of arson in Kosciusko County and was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

The sentence will be served at the same time as the 50-year sentence he received for barn fires he set in Elkhart County.

Hershberger still faces another count of arson for a fire in neighboring Marshall County.

Hershberger’s girlfriend, Sherry Thomas, is also facing charges related to the barn fires in Kosciusko County. She was sentenced to eight years of home detention and two years of probation in connection with the Elkhart County barn fires. She’s also charged in the Marshall County case.