"Drank and Came Home, Wife Didn't Open Door"... Man Acquitted for Setting Fire to Milk Dispenser

Investigation Results: "Concerns of Domestic Violence"

A man in his 50s who was charged with setting fire to a milk slot after his wife changed the front door password and refused to open the door was acquitted in the first trial.

Seoul Central District Court building.

According to the legal community on the 5th, the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 32 (Presiding Judge Cho Seung-woo) acquitted Mr. A, who was accused of arson of a residential building, on the 23rd of last month. On October 16 of last year, Mr. A tried to enter his home in Seocho-gu, Seoul, but his wife did not open the door due to concerns about domestic violence. At that time, Mr. A, angry, opened the door of the milk slot installed at the bottom of the front door and set fire with a disposable lighter.

The court stated, "It is insufficient to recognize that Mr. A had the intent, even indirectly, to set fire to the apartment building itself or to tolerate such a possibility," and added, "At that time, not only the wife but also the daughter was living in the house, and an elderly mother was living in the house in front. It is questionable whether he intended to put his family in danger by setting the fire."

The court also said, "The fire caused by Mr. A was weak, and it did not produce smoke enough to activate the internal fire prevention sensors of the building, and the wife easily extinguished it by pouring water contained in a PET bottle," and "Only the milk slot inside the installed front door was somewhat scorched."