Arson Suspect Claims Intent to "Intimidate," Survivors Say "He Tried to Kill Us"

[Anchor]

A man in his 70s who set fire to two buildings in Yeoksam-dong, injuring 19 people, has been arrested. While he repeatedly claimed that he did it to send a warning and expose the world, the victims unanimously stated that it was an attempt to kill them.

Reporter Im Jihyeon has more.

[Reporter]

A man wearing a hat and a mask, with his hands bound, leaves the police station.

The man in his 70s, identified as A, who set fire to two buildings in Yeoksam-dong, Seoul, in succession, is being transferred to court for a pre-trial detention hearing.

[Suspect A: (Did you intend to kill?) It wasn't to kill, it was to scare them. It's right here. The fraud going on. I wanted to let the world know...] 

Suspect A, who reportedly remained silent and refused to testify during his second police interrogation the day before yesterday (October 21), stood before reporters and repeated his previous claim that two patent law firms had defrauded him.

A was previously punished in 2022 after visiting the same two patent law firms, splashing gasoline, and pretending to ignite a lighter. Returning four years later, A did not stop at a mere gesture this time.

According to testimonies from survivors obtained by SBS, A asked for a manager surnamed B at the patent firm, told an employee who was guiding him to "go inside the office," poured flammable material in front of the approximately 1-square-meter entrance, and set it on fire.

One survivor said, "There was a garden-style terrace outside the floor where the fire broke out, so we were able to break the glass and escape," adding, "By setting fire to the only exit, he tried to kill us."

After securing custody of A, the police plan to review the application of attempted murder charges through additional investigations.

It was revealed that A, who was released from prison in June of last year, was outside the police surveillance net.

When serving prison sentences for crimes such as murder or arson, information is collected for two years after release. However, because A was punished for special intimidation, he fell outside the police monitoring system.

The court issued an arrest warrant for A, citing concerns that he might flee.

(Video reporting: Yang Hyeon-cheol, Kim Han-gyeol | Video editing: Yoon Tae-ho | Design: Kim Han-gil, Han Heung-soo, Byun Da-young)

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