A judge has sentenced the former fire chief of the Coventry Fire District to three years of probation and ordered him to repay nearly $200,000 for fraudulently receiving retirement benefits.
Paul Labbadia, 52, of North Providence, pleaded no contest in January to three counts that he filed false documents to obtain a public pension. During his sentencing Friday, Superior Court Associate Justice Netti Vogel also removed one year toward his pension credits that the state says he lied to obtain.
Vogel said she was trying to balance a man who worked for years in public safety with someone who committed a crime that violated the public's trust.
"It's a tale of two men," Vogel said.