Fire Near Democratic Party Office Ahead of President Yoon's Arrest... Self-Immolation Suspect Under Investigation

A fire suspected to be arson occurred at the Democratic Party Central Office in the early morning, one day before the execution of the second arrest warrant for President Yoon Suk-yeol, and the police are investigating.

The Yeongdeungpo Police Station in Seoul announced on the 17th that a fire suspected to be arson broke out around 12:11 a.m. on the 15th in a vacant lot next to the Democratic Party Central Office in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul.

The fire was extinguished within 15 minutes of its outbreak, and aside from some scorching on the building's exterior wall, there was no other damage. The police are conducting a pre-investigation (internal inquiry) by securing CCTV footage around the scene, keeping open the possibility that someone deliberately set the fire.

Among the suspects for arson is a man in his 50s, Mr. A, who attempted self-immolation near the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Office (Gosucheo) in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, after President Yoon was arrested on the 15th. Mr. A was transferred to a nearby university hospital with third-degree burns over his entire body but has reportedly not yet regained consciousness.

Mr. A also attempted self-immolation near the presidential residence in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, around 6 a.m. on the same day but was stopped by the police.

During the police investigation, Mr. A reportedly stated that he was angry because "Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung was not arrested, but the sitting president was being arrested."

A police official said, "There is evidence to place Mr. A as a suspect at the scene of the incident. We are identifying the detailed circumstances and specific causes of the case."

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