PORTLAND – The owner of a fire equipment company in Buxton remains free on bail while he awaits sentencing on federal charges of falsifying hundreds of fire extinguisher tests.

Dale Nason, 49, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court on Friday to 18 violations of the federal Hazardous Materials Transportation Law and faces up to five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 on each count. No date has been set for sentencing.

Nason, who owns Statewide Fire Protection, admitted lying to customers about having conducted required tests on high-pressure carbon dioxide fire extinguishers between May 2001 and July 2004.

The prosecution said Nason, who lacked the equipment needed to conduct the tests, put his clients at risk and violated their trust.

Fire extinguishers, welding tanks, dive tanks and other cylinders filled with high-pressure gas must be tested periodically by facilities licensed by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Because of the risk of rupture, the fire extinguishers that figure in the case must be tested every five years, Assistant U.S. Attorney Toby Dilworth said.