Minden Police and the Minden Fire Department responded to a call of a fire that destroyed equipment around 3 a.m., Police Chief Steve Cropper said. There was no structural damage to any of the buildings. Courtesy Photo/Minden Police Department
Minden Police and the Minden Fire Department are seeking the public’s help in finding the person or persons responsible for breaking into the ag shop at Minden High School and a suspected arson over the weekend.
Police Chief Steve Cropper says the break-in was discovered Monday morning when students went to class and discovered damage to the door and the office had been broken into.
“The investigation is still very preliminary,” he said. “When the break in was discovered, school officials found an undisclosed amount of money missing from the office.”
The money was collected from a recent fundraiser for the school’s golf team, the chief said.
Also under investigation is a fire that was reportedly set to a pile of equipment outside the now condemned old gymnasium Sunday morning.
Minden Police and the Minden Fire Department responded to a call of a fire that destroyed the equipment around 3 a.m., Cropper said. There was no structural damage to any of the buildings.
Fire Chief Kip Mourad says, along with MPD, the Louisiana State Fire Marshal’s Office has been called in to investigate, adding they are investigating the incident as arson.
“It was a bunch of stuff stacked up outside, and they were in the process of moving it,” Mourad said. “They were supposed to be putting into a storage pod.”
Mourad and Cropper say a suspect was seen on video at the time the fire was set.
School personnel have been moving equipment from the old gymnasium since its condemnation last week. Under discussion is what to do with the old gymnasium as well as the home side of The Pit, the school’s football stadium.
Principal Robin Tucker said last week the gym and the stadium were condemned following the March 8 flooding. All football equipment, including weight room equipment, was moved from the gym to the basement until a more permanent solution can be found.
If anyone has any information on either incident, call Minden Police at 377-1212 or the fire department at 371-4232.