Lee Hyo-sik is Finance Desk editor at The Korea Times. He manages finance-related stories on macroeconomics, banks, stocks, bonds, crypto etc. He is passionate about covering what's happening in Korea's financial industry and explaining it to both Korean and non-Korean readers. You can reach him at leehs@koreatimes.co.kr. Your insights and feedbacks are always appreciated.
Man sets himself on fire at foreigner-only casino
By Lee Hyo-sik
An unidentified man believed to have set himself on fire was found dead late Friday night in front of the Seven Luck Casino at the Millennium Seoul Hilton Hotel in central Seoul.
According to the Namdaemun Police Station, a taxi driver reported at 11:50 p.m. Friday that a man on fire was lying on a path to the foreigner-only casino, located at the foot of Mt. Nam.
The casino is operated by the state-run Grand Korea Leisure (GKL).
When firefighters arrived at the scene, the man was already dead having sustained severe burns all over his body.
Police officers found a plastic bottle believed to have contained highly flammable paint thinner and a lighter on the roof of the casino. The man was believed to have jumped off the roof after setting himself on fire, they said.
Witnesses said two or three explosions were heard at the time. When they tried to identify what caused the blast, they found something was burning on an access path to the casino from the main road.
Investigators are currently trying to confirm the man’s identity. But they face difficulties in doing so because the body was severely damaged and all his personal belongings were burnt beyond recognition.
Police, after establishing the man’s identity, plan to question employees to find out whether they knew of the man and if the casino had any conflict with clients or other individuals.