Tuesday morning, December 26, at approximately 10:40am the Monroe County 911 Communications Center received several 911 calls reporting a fire inside the Sparta Walmart, located at 1600 West Wisconsin Street in the City of Sparta.
The Sparta Fire Department and Sparta Police Department were dispatched to the business where they found an active fire inside. The store was evacuated and the Fire Department worked to extinguish the fire, which was too large for the store’s sprinkler system.
A suspect in the apparent arson was quickly identified as a 17 year old juvenile and was arrested by Sparta Police Department and booked into the Monroe County Jail on several charges, including Arson and Recklessly Endangering Safety.
The Wisconsin Division of Criminal Investigation is assisting with the investigation at the scene.
Preliminary estimates are well over 7 million dollars in damage and loss. Walmart will remain closed for at least the next few days.
The Sparta Police Department plans to provide an update on this case later this week.
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