"Watching While Drinking a Beverage" 50s Man Sets Fire on Subway... Citizens Prevent Major Accident

Arson Attempted at Two Busan Subway Line 1 Stations
Civilians Watch While Drinking Beverages from Vending Machines and Extinguishing Fire
Suspect Caught Following Station Staff Report Based on CCTV Appearance

A man in his 50s was arrested by the police for attempting to set fire consecutively at two stations on Busan Subway Line 1. Photo is not related to any specific expression in the article.

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] A man in his 50s was caught by the police after attempting to set fires consecutively at two stations on Busan Metro Line 1. If it were not for the quick response of citizens and the report by the station staff, it could have led to a major accident.

According to the Busan Metropolitan Police Agency on the 1st, around 5:50 a.m. that day, a man in his 50s, Mr. A, set fire to some tissue paper and threw it into a trash can at Dadaepo Beach Station on Busan Metro Line 1, then left the scene.

At around 10:09 a.m., Mr. A appeared again at City Hall Station on Line 1 and put burning tissue paper into a trash can once more. Notably, during the second arson, he exhibited strange behavior. According to the on-site closed-circuit television (CCTV), he calmly inserted money into a vending machine and took out a drink after setting the fire. The CCTV also captured him sitting on a chair, drinking the beverage, and watching citizens extinguish the fire.

Fortunately, the fire was quickly extinguished by citizens’ prompt actions, preventing a major accident. The first fire was reportedly put out by a citizen at the station who used bottled water they were holding. At City Hall Station, a nearby citizen immediately extinguished the fire with a fire extinguisher.

Mr. A reappeared at Dadaepo Beach Station, where he had first set the fire, around 10:55 a.m. and was arrested by the police. The station staff, who reviewed the arson footage on CCTV early that morning and remembered Mr. A’s appearance, reported to the police when he appeared again.

The police have urgently arrested Mr. A on charges of arson of an occupied building and are investigating the motive behind the crime. After the investigation is completed, they plan to apply for an arrest warrant.