Arlington home explodes after suspect fires flare gun: police

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• Find out what’s happening in yourcommunity on the Patch app
• ABC News
• House explodes in Arlington, Virginia, while police serving search warrant, officials say
• An explosion razes a home in Maryland, sending 1 person to the hospital
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• Virginia house explosion not caused by firefight with federal agents. None were there

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will work to positively identify the individual and determine cause and manner of death. Our investigation has now transferred into a recovery operation as we work to collect and process evidence. There is no ongoing threat to the community related to this incident and no outstanding suspects. A house in Virginia exploded Monday night shortly after officers were executing a search warrant at the residence for reports of a person discharging several rounds with a flare gun, officials said. "I would characterize these communications as primarily complaints about alleged frauds he believed were perpetrated against him," Sundberg told reporters.

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One resident said she and her roommate had just arrived home nearby when they heard “gunshot-sounding things.” Moments later, “it felt like we got attacked. Kim said he heard the police talking to the suspect with a megaphone. They told him to come out peacefully, and they weren’t going to leave. Sam Kim, whose backyard is nearby, captured a video of a SWAT team trying to coax the suspect out of the house.

ABC News

PHOTOS: Arlington, Va., house explodes - Richmond Times-Dispatch

PHOTOS: Arlington, Va., house explodes.

Posted: Tue, 05 Dec 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]

When a tactical unit of police officers breached the front door, attempting to execute the search warrant, a person inside opened fire with a gun, Penn said. In an effort to flush him out, “officers began to deploy nonflammable, less-lethal chemical munitions to multiple areas within the residence where the suspect was believed to be hiding,” Penn said. The fire was under control around 10.30pm, but Arlington county fire department crews continued to battle small spot fires, police said early on Tuesday. Three officers reported minor injuries, but no one was taken to the hospital. Monday, when police received a call about possible shots fired on Yoo’s block.

House explodes in Arlington, Virginia, while police serving search warrant, officials say

House Explodes In D.C. Suburb: Here's Everything We Know About The Inferno As Police Served Search Warrant - Forbes

House Explodes In D.C. Suburb: Here's Everything We Know About The Inferno As Police Served Search Warrant.

Posted: Tue, 05 Dec 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]

Police obtained a search warrant for the home and tried to make contact with the suspect by telephone and loudspeakers, but he remained inside without responding, police said. The suspect, whose name was not immediately released, is still unaccounted for. The suspect accused of firing the flare gun is presumed dead, authorities said in an update on Tuesday.

The authorities said James Yoo, 56, was believed to have died when his home exploded as the police were preparing to search the residence on Monday night. ARLINGTON, Va. — The Virginia man whose house in suburban Washington, D.C., blew up had a history of making unsubstantiated complaints that he had been defrauded, and just days before the explosion he claimed on social media that his neighbors were spies. The fire department said it appeared the apparent explosion happened due to a gas appliance "that was not fully turned off." The Arlington Fire Department said crews responded to reports of an explosion and fire in the Viridian neighborhood in northern Arlington.

One man with burn injuries that were considered non-life threatening was taken to the hospital, but it wasn’t immediately clear if the person had been in the house or outside, fire Lt. Twana Allen said Sunday. Two other nearby homes received moderate damage stemming from the fire, which was extinguished by Sunday morning and still under investigation, Allen said. Arlington County Police Chief Andy Penn said police went to the home after James Yoo, 56, fired a “flare-type gun” into the neighborhood more than 30 times from within the house. “We are aware of concerning social media posts allegedly made by the suspect, and these will be reviewed as part of the ongoing criminal investigation,” Penn said. Wiringi said debris landed on nearby roofs and that electrical power went out along the block.

An explosion razes a home in Maryland, sending 1 person to the hospital

In LinkedIn posts, Yoo accused the U.S. government of corruption and uploaded photos of a couple he said were his next-door neighbors in Arlington. And Mrs. Smith” — after the film in which Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie played a spy couple — and claimed his neighbors were surveilling him. He denied having written such a note or having suicidal thoughts and accused the hospital, his wife and sister of holding him there against his will.

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At the scene, crews discovered a small fire, as well as a destroyed privately owned outdoor book collection box – a Little Free Library. On Wednesday, the fire department responded to the 100 block of North Columbus Street for a reported fire outside. All crimes are alleged and all suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

Virginia house explosion not caused by firefight with federal agents. None were there

Savage said police did not have any evidence that others were in the duplex but could not rule out the possibility. Based on the preliminary investigation of the incident, we believe the resident of the home, James Yoo, 56, of Arlington, VA is the involved suspect. Human remains have been located at the scene which are presumed to be the suspect.

Arlington is located across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C. The explosion occurred in Bluemont, a neighborhood in north Arlington where many of the homes are duplexes. On Tuesday, officers wearing Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives jackets combed a nearby street looking through papers scattered in the debris field. Junk mail carrying Yoo’s name and the address of the home that exploded was visible on the street. An investigation into the cause of the explosion is ongoing, fire officials said. Police asked that anyone with photos or video of the area share them with investigators. "We were attempting to make contact with the individual when shots were discharged inside the residence."

“It just rocked our house,” said Suzanne Sundburg, 62, who lives a few blocks away and was working at home with her husband Monday afternoon when she started hearing “a strange thumping” that preceded the blaze. An hourslong standoff in a quiet neighborhood preceded the explosion. Police have asked that anyone with photos or video of the area share them with investigators. He put foil over the windows, blocked everything and never came out of the house,” neighbour Tracy Mitchell told NBC. Although the suspect’s motivations are still under investigation, Yoo’s life is believed to have been rife with troubled relationships.

Blast suspect James Yoo is reported to have filed frivolous lawsuits against his ex-wife and younger sister. The Department of Environment Services continues to clear debris, a process that will take time; continued patience is appreciated. Bob Maynes thought maybe a tree had fallen on his house when he heard the explosion. Carla Rodriguez of South Arlington said she could hear the explosion more than 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) away and came to the scene, but police kept onlookers blocks away.

Assistant Fire Chief Jason Jenkins said authorities turned off gas service to the home and evacuated nearby residents — including people who lived in the other part of the duplex — about 90 minutes before the explosion. "At this point, officers experienced what is believed to be multiple gunshots from a firearm coming from within the dwelling," Penn said. One video posted to social media appears to show a vehicle with a flashing blue light approaching the home when a loud blast suddenly blows off the roof of the house. Within seconds, the building appears to crumple to the ground and burst into flames, sending debris flying through the air and setting off a nearby car alarm. “We have not been able to access the home at this point, so I don’t have the status of the suspect,” said Ashley Savage, a spokeswoman for the Arlington County Police Department, by phone. The man was “believed to be inside the residence at the time of the explosion.” The investigation into the explosion is ongoing, the police said in the statement.

He did not respond to requests to come outside, prompting officers to fire irritants into the residence, police said. Baltimore County fire officials said they were called to the scene in the Essex community east of Baltimore just after 11 p.m. When they arrived, crews found fire coming from the townhouse, the fire department said.

"The information contained therein and the nature of those communications did not lead to opening any FBI investigations." Three officers reported minor injuries and there were no transports to the hospital related to this incident. Fire crews had evacuated other residents of the duplex and surrounding homes starting at around 7 p.m. ET as a precaution, which "saved lives," Arlington County Fire Department Assistant Chief Jason Jenkins told reporters. Police said in a statement that a preliminary investigation indicated the suspect "discharged a flare gun approximately times from inside his residence into the surrounding neighborhood." Three officers reported minor injuries, but none was transported to the hospital.

The person had fired the flare gun around 30 to 40 times "from inside his residence into the surrounding neighborhood," police said in a statement early Tuesday. At Tuesday’s briefing, Jenkins said investigators have not ruled out chemical munitions as a possible contributor to the explosion. David Sundberg, the No. 2 official in the FBI’s Washington Field Office, said Yoo had repeatedly contacted the bureau “via phone calls, online tips and letters over a number of years,” complaining of fraud. Sundberg declined to detail the complaints but said none of them prompted the FBI to open an investigation.