Sheriff seeking info on park vandalism, suspicious fire

The Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department is looking for possible links between a suspicious fire and damage at Anderson Falls Park

The more than 130-year-old District 2 schoolhouse at County Roads 500E and 250N burned down early Monday morning. Firefighters said the structure had no utilities turned on, or materials stored inside, leading them to label the fire as suspicious.

The same night vandals damaged the county-owned park in eastern Bartholomew County, overturning the portable restroom facility, defacing buildings and features with profane graffiti and causing other damage to the rural park.

Chief Deputy Maj. Chris Lane said there there is nothing currently connecting the two incidents. “However, the timing and the location certainly make it a possibility,” Lane said.

Overhead Door of South Central Indiana is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the vandalism at the park.

If you have any information on the incidents, you can call the sheriff’s department tip line at 812-379-1712. Tips can be left anonymously.