BEDFORD, Ind. (WDRB) -- Investigators are offering a $5,000 reward for information about a string of suspicious fires in southern Indiana.
The Lawrence County sheriff said fires were deliberately set in Bedford and Springville earlier this week. The fires were reported between 2:30 and 3:30 p.m. on March 19, within a couple miles of one another.
In the span of an hour, a house, a mobile home, a detached garage, and two fields caught on fire. One of those wildfires was next to Highview Baptist Church, which had some burn marks on the side of the building but no serious damage.
No one was inside any of the buildings and no one was hurt. But Sheriff Mike Branham said when the detached garage was set on fire, one person was inside the house nearby.
The sheriff said he has never seen an arson case like this in his entire career and called it concerning. He said there is urgency for detectives to catch whoever is responsible.
"I worry that there's the possibility that more fires could be set and that someone could get hurt," said Sheriff Branham.
The Indiana State Fire Marshal determined the fires were intentionally set. The department is conducting tests to see how the fires were started, if any accelerant or chemicals were used.
The sheriff said detectives did identify and question one person of interest, but no arrests have been made. It's still early on in the investigation, and detectives are not ruling out the possibility of more than one suspect.
Anyone with information about the arson case is asked to call the Lawrence County Sheriff's Department at 812-275-3316 or the Indiana Arson Hotline at 1-800-382-4628.
A reward of up to $5,000 is being offered for information that leads to an arrest.
Copyright 2019 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
