[Anchor]
CCTV footage obtained by SBS captures a man in his 70s, suspected of arson, walking around carrying a container filled with liquid. Both of the buildings where the fires broke out housed patent law firm offices. It has been learned that the suspect was arrested four years ago for attempting to set fire to the same buildings.
Reporting follows from Je Hui-won.
[Reporter]
A man walks around inspecting a building while carrying a plastic container filled with a yellowish liquid.
CCTV captured a man in his 70s, identified as A, wandering around the two buildings in Yeoksam-dong, Seoul, where fires broke out in succession around noon, carrying what is believed to be an accelerant.
[Lee Gil-yeol / Witness : As I was coming down to eat, someone said they saw a man walking around carrying a container similar to a thinner can.]
Shortly afterward, accompanied by a loud sound resembling a battery explosion, the flames spread rapidly.
[Building Employee : They said a crackling sound came from the pantry area. One person rushed out, and then the person next to me rushed out.]
Suspect A, who is believed to have set fires at the two buildings in succession with a seven-minute interval, fled in a taxi and was apprehended by police near Dongmyo Station in Seoul about four hours later.
It was found that suspect A had a prior record of being arrested and detained on charges of preparation for arson four years ago for attempting to set fire to the same buildings.
[Building Official : I understand there was a bit of a happening. He probably poured quite a bit of thinner on the stairs. It was reported, and he was caught.]
The two buildings where the fires occurred face each other across an intersection, and both house patent law firm offices that handle patent disputes and trademark registrations.
Escorted to the Suseo Police Station in Seoul, suspect A stated that he had prepared the crime starting three days prior and even pulled out documents to show the press.
[Suspect A : (Did you hold a grudge against the patent law firm?) I filed a patent back in 2000, but they swindled me. Look at this, look. Please take some pictures of this. This is evidence.]
Police plan to investigate the specific motive for the crime, viewing it as stemming from grievances regarding past patent-related matters.
(Video by Kim Se-kyung and Yang Ji-hoon | Video Editing by Lee So-young)
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