Frederick Ziegler, the embattled Douglass Township supervisor, pleaded guilty Wednesday in the Montgomery County Common Pleas Court to one count of unsworn falsification to authorities, a second-degree misdemeanor.

                The plea, which ended Ziegler's non-jury criminal trial, includes his immediate resignation from the township's board of supervisors and to not seek public office again, according to Jeffrey A. Johnson, the acting deputy press secretary for the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General.

                Judge Gary Silow also imposed a sentence of one-year of probation, according to Johnson.

                The trial against Ziegler, who had been facing charges of theft by unlawful taking, receiving stolen property, intimidation and retaliation against witnesses, forgery, unsworn falsification to authorities, tampering with public records, obstruction of administrative law and conflict of interest from September 2012 to the end of 2014, commenced earlier this month following several delays.

                On Dec. 6, the second day of the trial in Norristown, Ziegler felt a severe pain going down left arm and shortness of breath, according to his attorney Vincent DiFabio.

                Ziegler, 63, was taken from the courtroom and transported to a nearby hospital, according to Johnson prosecuting the case.

                DiFabio said his client was released the following day. The attorney declined to comment further on Ziegler's health.

                The defendant took the stand on Tuesday, when the trial resumed, according to Johnson. Ziegler's entered his plea the following day.

                According to law enforcement officials, Ziegler – who was initially arrested in September of 2014 – stole plywood, a chainsaw, a propane tank and illegally utilized a municipal gas card for his personal vehicle between August 2012 and November 2013.

                In January 2015, authorities rearrested Ziegler on refiled charges of the unlawful use of a Montgomery County Court subpoena and attempted intimidation of township Manager Pete Hiryak, a witness in the initial case against him. Ziegler is a former police chief in Douglass Township, who also worked as an investigator for the Montgomery County›s Extradition Unit.\

                Less than a month after the September 2, 2014 arrest, Ziegler, accompanied by former supervisors Chairman John Stasik, Jr., demanded an impromptu meeting with Hiryak at the township building, according to court papers.

            In the meeting, Ziegler announced he was conducting his own investigation, and that the supervisor began to question the manager about his personal and professional life, authorities claim.  With two out of three supervisors present, Hiryak felt compelled to answer the questions, the document states. 

            On Oct. 1, Ziegler again returned to the township building at 1320 East Philadelphia Ave. and demanded another meeting with Hiryak. The supervisor wanted to discuss allegations of Ziegler stealing shotguns from the Douglass Township Police Department and buying a rifle at Pachella Arms without paying for it, according to the affidavit. 

            It states that Ziegler showed Hiryak a copy of the forged subpoena and receipts from the gun dealer, along with a copy of the report he obtained from the Boyertown police.

            Hiryak told authorizes he "felt uncomfortable, cautious, and on guard speaking to Ziegler" on Oct. 1.