Man who accidentally lit match on plane faces heat

[March 19, 2010]  BOSTON (AP) -- A man from Maine who struck a match on a U.S. Airways flight to Boston's Logan International Airport is facing some heat -- but not over matches.

Massachusetts State Police detained 50-year-old Paul Prater of Sanford on Wednesday over an outstanding identity fraud warrant in Canton, Ga. State police spokesman David Procopio said no charges have been brought for the match lighting, which Prater called an accident.

Prater told police the match ignited when he pulled a package from his pocket during the flight from Washington, D.C.

Prater pleaded not guilty Thursday in East Boston District Court to a fugitive charge. He was held on $5,000 bail and ordered to return to Georgia within five days to clear the warrant.

It was unclear if he had hired an attorney.

[Associated Press]

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