All of the students are under 18 and have not been publicly identified

Heleker says he knows the older boys but not the younger student

The blaze started in a trash can outside the garage connected to their home

Four teenage boys in Idaho are believed to have set fire to their high school principal's house in retaliation for being suspended, police believe.

Arrest warrants have been requested for three high schoolers and one middle schooler after social media posts led investigators to connect them to the February 22 blaze, Payette Police Chief Mark Clark said.

The fire destroyed Payette High School principal Mark Heleker's home and three cars parked in the driveway.

Heleker; his wife Lorrie, a teacher; their 24-year-old daughter Katie Erwin and the family pets escaped the fire, which started in a trash can outside the garage.

A fire destroyed Payette High School principal Mark Heleker's Payette, Idaho, home and three cars parked in the driveway on February 22

Heleker, pictured back right with his family, was able to escape the fire along with his wife Lorrie (back left) and daughter Katie (center)

Heleker says he knows the older boys but not the younger student. All of the students are under 18 and have not been publicly identified.

He's a former mayor of the city of 7,500 people about 60 miles northwest of Boise, and has been an administrator for the school district for 22 years, according to the Idaho Statesman.

Heleker's son told his father about comments about the fire being made by students on social media, and Heleker then notified officials.

'There was talk swirling around, and that kind of created a path to follow,' Heleker told the Statesman.

Investigators followed the social media trail, and Clark said one student posted a Snapchat message featuring the fire emoji and bragging statements.

Charges against the boys were still pending as of Wednesday morning.

One teen will be charged with first-degree arson while the other three will be charged with conspiracy to commit arson, Clark told The Argus Observer.

Clark said investigators believe the suspects lit the house on fire in retaliation after they were disciplined.

'It appears to be some retaliation against the principal for a couple of them being suspended for the week prior,' Clark said.

Katie Erwin Heleker, who is working and studying to be a nurse, was the first of the family members to discover the fire.

She noticed the fire while walking her dog after work, and woke up her sleeping parents so they could evacuate.

After losing much of his Green Bay Packers memorabilia in the blaze, the team sent him a gift box with autographed pictures and other surprises

Investigators said that the fire started in a trash can outside the garage and quickly took over the entire house

She then collected her pets - a dog, lizard, snake and fish - after waking up her parents.

Mark Heleker was able to grab a few items, including photo albums, while accompanied by firefighters before the house burned completely down.

'It is the most helpless feeling,' Mark Heleker said. 'It's like something you see in a movie that you don't think will ever happen to you.'

Since the fire, the Helekers have been living in an Ontario hotel.

Friends and relatives have lent the family cars to drive until they are able to purchase vehicles of their own.

Payette High School organized aGoFundMe page for the family, and as of Wednesday afternoon, more than $2,200 had been raised.

Students also delivered a huge card to the principal following the fire.

'They've been phenomenal,' he told the Statesman.

Students at Payette High School organized a GoFundMe for the Heleker family and gave Heleker a signed poster following the fire

Payette High School also surprised Heleker after the principal's Green Bay Packers memorabilia was destroyed in the fire.

'Anybody that knows me, knows I'm a huge Green Bay Packers fan, and I had this Packers lanyard with my keys on it that I just quickly grabbed on the way out. But when I walked into the office the next day, no one could stay in the office because it was so smoky,' Heleker told the Observer.

He contacted the team in hopes of getting some new gear for Heleker, and the Packers responded enthusiastically, sending a gift box with a variety of memorabilia, including a football signed by the entire team and a personal card from quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

'I didn't know that happened,' Heleker said. 'A box arrived with all kinds of autographed memorabilia.'

The family is hoping to be back on their feet soon and are looking for a home to rent.