A man in his 30s has been booked without detention on suspicion of arson after waking up from sleep in a drunken state in the basement of an apartment and starting a fire due to the cold.
On December 1, Changwon Jungbu Police Station in Gyeongnam announced that a man in his 30s, referred to as Mr. A, has been booked on arson charges.
According to the police, at around 7:20 a.m. on November 29, Mr. A is suspected of setting fire to a fire extinguisher stand with a lighter in the stairway hallway on the first basement floor of an apartment in Seongsan-gu, Changwon, after waking up from sleep while intoxicated.
It is reported that a resident of the apartment, who smelled something burning nearby, saw Mr. A crouching and warming himself by the fire in the basement stairway hallway and reported him to the police.
Investigations revealed that Mr. A had been drinking the day before the incident, became severely intoxicated, and, unable to find his own home, attempted to sleep in the basement stairway of a nearby apartment building.
He then woke up due to the cold and, in an attempt to warm himself, set fire to the fire extinguisher stand.
The fire burned only the fire extinguisher stand and went out on its own before the fire department arrived. There were no casualties or evacuations.
A police official stated, "At the time of arrest, Mr. A reeked of alcohol," and added, "We are currently investigating the exact circumstances of the incident."
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