A man in his 50s was apprehended by police after threatening to set himself on fire with flammable liquid in front of the Hwasun County Office in South Jeolla Province.
According to the Hwasun Police Station on September 25, a 57-year-old man, identified as A, was urgently arrested at around 8:18 p.m. the previous day on suspicion of attempted arson of a public building. He allegedly poured flammable liquid on himself and placed a lighter nearby in the front yard of the Hwasun County Office in Hwasun-eup, Hwasun County, threatening to set himself on fire.
Police investigations revealed that A attempted the act out of dissatisfaction over the authorities' failure to address his complaint regarding the paving of a forest road near his own Amur cork tree farm. The situation did not escalate further, as responding officers intervened at the scene.
The police have charged A with attempted arson of a public building and stated that, depending on the results of the investigation, the charges could be changed to include special threats. Authorities plan to conduct further questioning and will consider whether to request an arrest warrant.
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