"Liquid Cigarettes Turned Out to Be Drugs"…The Full Story of the Arson Incident at Uijeongbu Gas Station

Inhaled Without Doubt on Acquaintance's Recommendation
Sudden Hallucinations Lead to Arson
Acquaintance Found Using Three Types of Drugs

A man in his 30s who set fire to a gas station in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi Province, was found to have inhaled marijuana after being deceived by the claim that it was a premium liquid e-cigarette.

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On the 2nd, the Uijeongbu Police Station in Gyeonggi reported that at around 12:40 a.m. on the 29th of last month, A (32), an employee at a gas station in Jangam-dong, Uijeongbu, sprayed gasoline on himself and the surroundings and set fire after inhaling marijuana. The police who arrived extinguished the fire themselves, but A suffered second-degree burns over his entire body. Investigation revealed that A was deceived by B, a man in his 30s and an acquaintance, into using drugs.

B was originally a coworker at the gas station where A worked. Even after quitting the job, B occasionally visited the gas station to talk with A or smoke together. Just before the incident, B visited the gas station and met A. While talking inside B’s car, B suddenly took out a liquid e-cigarette and said, "This is a premium liquid cigarette that recently came out, and it’s really good," offering it to A. After B took a puff first, A inhaled it without suspicion.

However, this cigarette was not an ordinary liquid e-cigarette but contained liquid marijuana. Immediately after inhaling the marijuana, A was startled by sudden hallucinations and, losing his rationality to stop it, set the fire. He also called 112 and reported, "I took drugs." Panicked, B fled by car but was caught in Dobong-gu, Seoul. A preliminary reagent test detected three types of drugs in B: methamphetamine, marijuana, and ecstasy.

Fortunately, A is reported to be out of life-threatening condition. A police official stated, "Considering the situation at the time, the statements from both sides, the background of the individuals involved, and the circumstances before and after, it is judged that A was deceived by B’s words." The police captured other evidence of B’s drug use and arrested him on charges of drug use and possession.