Two arrested in Circus World Museum fire

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Two people have been arrested in a fire and vandalism at the state-owned Circus World Museum in Baraboo.

Kory Evert, 20, of Baraboo and a 16-year-old boy face possible charges of arson, criminal damage and criminal trespassing.

Baraboo police Lt. Rob Sinden said a tip to the Sauk County Crime Stoppers helped nab the suspects.

They’re accused of torching a three-story building where antique circus wagons were being repaired for the revival of the Great Circus Parade next summer in downtown Milwaukee.

The fire only damaged the outside of the structure but that was because a police officer drove by the museum just as the blaze was getting started.

Had that not happened, museum director Steve Freese said the building and the circus wagons all could have been lost.

Also, the two males are accused of spray-painting graffiti nearby.

It included a swastika and the words “Mein Kampf,” which refers to a book by Adolf Hitler.

Sinden said police have no proof the crime was politically-motivated. He said there was at least one other vandalism incident in Baraboo similar to the one at Circus World.

Tags: wisconsin news, circus, world, fire, arrests