HILO >> A Big Island firefighter has been placed on paid leave after he was accused of lying to a federal grand jury about his relationship with a Honolulu deputy prosecutor in the fraud and corruption case against her and her husband.

The Hawaii Tribune-Herald reports Jesse Ebersole was charged Monday in federal court in Honolulu with felony conspiracy to obstruct.

Hawaii Fire Chief Darren Rosario says the 49-year-old battalion chief “was directly involved with the saving of many lives” during his 25-year career. He declined to comment further, citing the ongoing investigation.

According to the court documents, Katherine Kealoha instructed Ebersole to lie about their relationship, which was funded by stolen money.

Katherine Kealoha and former Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha are awaiting federal trials on bank fraud and corruption allegations.