Expressing Anger by Setting Fires... Citizens Are Anxious Amid Repeated Arson Incidents

The National Forensic Service is conducting a detailed investigation at the scene of the arson incident at a lawyer's office in Suseong-gu, Daegu.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] Recent arson incidents have occurred consecutively, raising concerns among citizens. In particular, as arson crimes expressing anger targeting unspecified many have increased, there are calls for related research and the establishment of systems.

According to the police and fire authorities on the 11th, the fire at a lawyer's office in Daegu on the 9th started with arson by suspect A. Around 10:55 a.m. that day, A deliberately set fire to a lawyer's office on the 2nd floor of a building with 2 basement floors and 5 above-ground floors near the courthouse in Beomeo-dong, Suseong-gu, Daegu. As a result of this fire, 7 people including 1 lawyer, 5 staff members inside the office, and A died. In addition, about 50 tenants and clients in the same building were injured.

The building's closed-circuit television (CCTV) at the time captured A carrying a box presumed to contain a flammable substance wrapped in a white cloth and moving to the 2nd floor. A joint investigation by the police and the National Forensic Service confirmed that the substance was gasoline. This conclusion was based on the analysis of evidence collected at the investigation site and combustion residues scattered at the fire scene. Also, a weapon about 11 cm in blade length, known to be commonly used for mountaineering, was found.

The direct cause of death for all 7 deceased is presumed to be carbon monoxide poisoning due to the fire. According to the Suseong Police Station in Daegu on the 11th, the National Forensic Service conducted autopsies on the 7 deceased the previous day and reported these findings. Among the deceased, 2 had injuries from the weapon, but it was considered difficult to view these as the direct cause of death.

The cause of the fire at the Sammaksa Temple office in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province, which occurred in March, was also recently concluded to be arson. According to SBS on the 10th, the police, who had been investigating the cause of the fire considering the possibility of arson, concluded that the head monk B set the fire and closed the investigation. It was explained that footage from the vehicle's black box showed B repeatedly pouring a flammable liquid contained in a cup onto his own vehicle. At that time, the fire spread to the temple office, injuring 2 people including the temple caretaker, and the entire office building was burned down. B died in this fire.

A man in his 30s suspected of setting fires consecutively in the Yeongdeungpo-gu area of Seoul, causing 2 casualties, was sent to prosecution in custody. He is accused of setting fire to a 2nd-floor commercial building in Singil-dong, Yeongdeungpo-gu, around 11:05 p.m. on April 14, and then setting fire to a 4th-floor commercial building in Yeongdeungpo-dong around 3:23 a.m. the next day, resulting in 1 death.

Since arson crimes have the characteristic of so-called "random crimes" that cause harm to unspecified many, voices calling for the expansion of institutional measures to prevent them are growing.

According to the quarterly crime trend report issued by the Supreme Prosecutors' Office in April, 250 arson crimes occurred in the 4th quarter of 2021. This is a 7.4% decrease compared to 270 cases in the 4th quarter of 2020. However, compared to the 16.1% decrease in arson crimes from 322 cases in 2019 to 270 cases in the 4th quarter of 2020, the rate of decrease has slowed, and arson crimes continue to occur every year.

Concerns have grown especially as arson crimes due to impulsive motives have increased. According to the National Police Agency, among 1,196 arson crimes in 2020, 51 cases were due to impulsive arson, accounting for 43.3%. This is a significant increase compared to 35.8% in 2016. Arson crimes targeting unspecified many by setting fire to buildings have also increased. The proportion of arson crimes targeting others rose from 36.25% in 2016 to 38.63% in 2020.

Experts explained that when individuals feel their problems are unjust, anger crimes killing unspecified many occur, and in particular, Korea mainly experiences crimes through arson rather than firearms. They also pointed out that arson crimes expressing anger targeting unspecified many pose a very high risk of causing casualties, so more meticulous system preparation and strong punishment should be implemented.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.