Testimony suggests that friction between the management office and residents may have been the motive behind an incident in Gyeongsan, Gyeongsangbuk-do, where a resident set fire to the management office, injuring eight people.

Resident A, a man in his 70s booked on arson charges this morning (July 23), is reportedly known to have been in conflict with the management office recently over management regulations and a resident representative election.

Resident A reportedly ran in the recent resident representative election and lost, after which he caused a disturbance by smashing the ballot box.

A related meeting was scheduled for today, the day of the incident.

Police are investigating the exact motive, believing that he may have committed the crime due to a buildup of grievances during conflicts surrounding apartment management issues.

Meanwhile, it has been reported that some residents of this apartment had been raising issues regarding the management office's budget execution and operation of management regulations, filing complaints and even requesting an audit for several months.

One female resident said, "Because this apartment has a small number of households, the resident representative also serves as the head of the management office," adding, "Some residents continuously filed complaints claiming that the management office was misusing the budget."

There is also testimony from residents that the power cords for CCTVs illuminating various parts of the apartment—excluding the management office—had all been damaged prior to the accident, making whether this incident was premeditated another matter for police to investigate.

Earlier at around 8:30 a.m. today, an explosion and fire broke out inside the management office of an apartment in Sadong, Gyeongsan, and was extinguished in about 20 minutes.

The accident injured eight men and women in their 40s to 70s, including apartment residents.

While there are no fatalities, one of them is reportedly in critical condition.

Among the injured is Resident A, who was shown entering the management office carrying flammable materials just before the explosion.

Because a senior center was located directly across from the management office where the accident occurred, five elderly people reportedly staying there at the time also suffered burns.

(Reported by Kim Jiuk | Video by Kim Naon | Graphics by Lee Su-min | Produced by SBS Digital News)