Officials conclude investigation in 2023 fire in DeKalb, no hate crime, no arrests made

A year-and-a-half long investigation at a charred DeKalb rodeo arena has left more questions than answers after no one can answer how the fire started or who placed a racially charged display and multiple people claim to have ownership of the property.

Joshua Daily, Texas state fire marshal, has concluded that the cause of a fire that destroyed the concession stand at the rodeo arena on North Runnels in the early morning hours of May 23, 2023 cannot be determined, according to a final report obtained from Dillion Gardner, investigator with the DeKalb Police Department.

The report could not definitively rule out the possibility of the blaze stemming from the electrical wiring, an appliance or “an intentional human act.”