A suspect has been arrested for starting a fire at Whitwell High School in Marion County, Tennessee, early Sunday morning.
Just hours after their football team won the state championship, the high school was discovered ablaze Sunday at around 2 a.m. The fire department arrived shortly thereafter and snuffed out the fire quickly, Marion County Sheriff's Office det. Matt Blansett said.
Through surveillance footage and evidence recovered at the scene and at the suspect's home, investigators were able to arrest 18-year-old Robert Cameron Dalton.
During a Monday afternoon news conference, investigators said Dalton, a former Whitwell High School student, confessed to the crime.
He's been charged with arson and burglary - because authorities said he entered the school without permission - and is being held in the Marion County Jail. His bond has not yet been set.
Marion County Director of Schools Mark Griffith said the fire was contained to just the hallway, and no classrooms were damaged.
Students were in class Monday, and "it's business as usual."
"It's very unfortunate," he said. "The community comes off one of the biggest days in the history of the school, and something unfortunate like this happens. We'll prosecute to the fullest and start healing up and moving on."
Griffith said he doesn't know whether the arson was connected to the school's big win, and investigators could not comment on those details during a Monday afternoon press conference.
"There is a bigger story to this event," Blansett said. "Eventually it will be brought to light. We just can't elaborate right now. It's a sad situation for everybody involved, really."
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