Lucas Goodrum, 21, of Scottsville was charged with murder in the death of freshman Katie Autry, university Police Chief Bob Deane said Sunday.
``We made the arrest based on information we received during the course of our investigation,'' Deane said.
He said Goodrum was not a student at the university, but refused to comment on any other details, including what Goodrum's relationship to Autry may have been and what led to his arrest.
Goodrum was being held Sunday on $1 million cash bond. Bob Edwards, vice president of university affairs, said more charges were expected to be filed, including arson.
A man who answered the telephone at Goodrum's father's home in Scottsville wouldn't comment Sunday.
The arrest came a week after firefighters pulled Autry from a fire in her second-floor dorm room around 4 a.m. Along with third-degree burns, she had puncture wounds and abrasions to her face and neck, authorities said. She died four days later.
``I hope that they have the right person,'' Autry's aunt, Virginia White, said Sunday. ``We still won't be satisfied until this person gets what's coming to them.''
No other students were injured in the May 4 fire, which was confined to Autry's room. Her roommate was away at the time, and only about 50 of the 310 residents were in the building.
``As the investigation continues, we'll learn how he got into Katie's room,'' said university President Gary Ransdell. ``We don't know at this point what took place behind the locked doors.''
Western Kentucky's campus police department has said little about the investigation, which it has led.
Throughout the week, more than 100 students were interviewed, including members of a campus fraternity, where friends said Autry had attended a party the night before the fire.
A woman who answered the telephone at the home of Autry's foster parents said the family would have no comment.
News of the arrest spread quickly across the campus of 16,000 students, about 110 miles south of Louisville.
``I'm glad they made an arrest,'' said Natalya Bourn, a senior from Danville, Ill., as she moved her belongings into a residence hall for the summer. ``It makes me feel more comfortable but not totally safe.''
Ransdell said policies related to the school's residence halls would be reviewed. ``We believe the residence halls are safe, but we will question everything,'' he said.
