Silent when asked if he regrets the crime... ‘Yeoksam-dong arson suspect’ appears for detention hearing

[Financial News] A man in his 70s surnamed Lee, suspected of setting fire to two patent law firm offices in Yeoksam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, one after another and injuring 19 people, appeared for a pre-arrest warrant hearing on the 22nd. Although Lee indicated that he was sorry to the victims, he fell silent when asked whether he regretted the crime.
Lee appeared with police at around 2:07 p.m. for the warrant hearing, wearing a light blue mask and holding papers in both hands.
When reporters asked Lee, “What did the patent law firm deceive you about?”, he held out the papers and said, “Take a picture of this. Look closely at this,” before heading into the courtroom.
When asked whether he had anything to say to the victims, he replied, “No, I am sorry, but...” He gave no particular response when asked whether he regretted the crime.
In seeking an arrest warrant for Lee, police cited concerns that he might flee or destroy evidence, as well as the instability of his housing situation.
Police reportedly concluded that Lee posed a flight risk, considering that he had been released from prison only a short time earlier after serving a sentence for a previous offense, as well as his movements after this offense.
Police also cited the fact that he had discarded the tool used in the crime as grounds for concern that he might destroy evidence. They further said that his lack of a fixed residence supported the need for detention.
Lee reportedly also exercised his right to remain silent during police questioning the previous day. Police questioned him for about two hours, from 10 a.m. to noon on the 21st, but he reportedly refused to make a statement.
Police are also checking whether Lee has a history of mental illness. They are investigating the motive for the crime and his mental state at the time, including by trying to obtain relevant medical records.
Lee is suspected of setting fire to two patent law firm offices in Yeoksam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, one after another on the 20th. A fire broke out at Shinmyeong Building at around 11:54 a.m., followed seven minutes later by another at nearby Hanyang Building, at around 12:01 p.m.
The fires injured 19 people. One of them, a female patent attorney in her 30s, was found in cardiac arrest but began breathing again after being taken to the hospital.
Lee fled the scene immediately after the crime but was apprehended by police near Dongmyo Station in Jongno District, Seoul, at around 4:16 p.m. that same day.
It was revealed that Lee had also previously been sentenced to two years and six months in prison for visiting the same patent law firms, spraying gasoline and threatening them in 2022. He reportedly had a dispute over fees after asking them to handle matters such as patent applications for an exercise device he had developed.
Even while being escorted by police on the 20th, Lee claimed that the patent law firm had defrauded him. He had said of how long he had prepared for the crime, “I started preparing three days ago.”
Meanwhile, whether Lee will be detained is expected to be decided after the warrant hearing today.
[email protected] Lee Dong-hyuk Reporter