Identity Released of Lee Myung-soo, 77, in Serial Arson Attacks on Gangnam Buildings

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency released the personal information of Lee Myung-soo (77), the suspect in the arson case that injured 26 people when he set fire to two buildings in Yeoksam-dong, Gangnam District, on the 20th of last month, disclosing his photo and name on the 3rd. Police convened the Personal Information Disclosure Review Committee on the 28th of last month, which approved the release, and the information was made public after a five-day grace period. The committee cited the severity of the harm, the brutality of the crime, sufficient evidence, and the need to prevent recidivism and deter crime as grounds for disclosure. Lee's personal information will be posted on the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency website for 30 days.

According to the police investigation, Lee had been systematically preparing the crime for a month beforehand, purchasing and stockpiling 17 liters of gasoline along with a plastic container and lighters near his home. Before the attack, he canceled his mobile phone service and settled the lease on his home, which had nine months remaining. One patent attorney injured in the arson was transported to the hospital in cardiac arrest and has not regained consciousness.

Lee has consistently claimed since his arrest that he wanted to voice grievances over being defrauded by a patent law firm, and police also obtained statements from people around him saying he had remarked that one must not stay silent after being scammed.

Police believe Lee set the fire with intent to kill, and on the 29th of last month forwarded him to prosecutors in detention, adding charges of attempted murder to the existing charge of arson of an occupied structure causing injury. Lee refused both a meeting with the prosecution review prosecutor and a profiler's psychological analysis, and the prosecution office will decide whether to indict him after reviewing the investigation records.