Top ATF agents investigating mansion fire

They have investigated the World Trade Center collapse, the Oklahoma City bombings, and now they are in Austin for the Governor's Mansion fire.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms National Response Team was downtown Tuesday, picking apart the Governor's Mansion for any clues as it investigates arson suspicions.

A team of 25 members from all over the country, including chemists and K-9 specialists, started work in the morning.

"A fire by its mere nature destroys evidence of what caused the fire," said ATF spokesman Earl Woodham.

Working against the odds, the team is on the ground, ready to find an arsonist.

"We go into every single fire investigation confident that we're going to solve the fire, and if it turns out to be an arson, we're going to find out who did it and put them in jail," Woodham said.

The state fire marshal and governor's office said there is evidence on videotape of one person near the mansion at the time of the fire.

"All that we're able to say right now is that the video surveillance is helping us say that we have evidence that this is deliberately set," said governor's spokeswoman Krista Piferrer.

The state fire marshal's spokeswoman said surveillance could be released Tuesday, but the state is still holding onto it as they continue their criminal investigation.

"The mansion, the mansion grounds, it's a crime scene," Piferrer said. "And so we want to make sure that we don't do anything to compromise the investigation."

By the end of the third day, everyone was still looking for clues, part of a long process still to come.

"I feel for the citizens, we also would love to see the mansion restored," Woodham said. "After we finish processing the scene, we'll turn it back over to the authorities with the state of Texas, and then the process will happen."

ATF said the criminal investigation could take about a week.