A local man with a history of mental illness was arrested yesterday morning at his home in the Praça de Ponte e Horta neighbourhood for an arson attack that targeted a PSP vehicle outside the Public Security Police (PSP) headquarters in Rua de Pequim in Zape early yesterday, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Leng Kam Lon said during a press conference yesterday.
The 24-year-old jobless suspect surnamed Kuan holds a Disability Assessment Registration Card issued by the Social Welfare Bureau (IAS).
According to Leng, a resident told a PSP officer who was on duty outside the PSP headquarters that he or she saw a fire under the rear of a PSP car parked in the reserved space opposite the headquarters when was driving along the street at around 2 a.m. yesterday. The officer immediately tackled the fire by stepping on burning tissue papers, and then extinguished the blaze with a fire extinguisher. Firefighters later arrived at the scene and found that no one was injured. They found the cause of the fire suspicious and therefore notified the Judiciary Police to follow up on the case.
Leng said that PJ officers discovered a red plastic bag and two glass bottles containing a small amount of paint thinner (天拿水) on the pavement next to the PSP vehicle whose rear bumper was burnt. PJ officers scrutinised CCTV footage of the area which showed a man appearing at the scene. He poured liquid on the rear of the vehicle, used a lighter to light some tissue papers setting them on fire. He then left the scene.
According to Leng, PJ officers identified Kuan as the suspect and arrested him yesterday morning at his home. Under questioning, Kuan refused to cooperate with the police and the officers also discovered that Kuan was unable to communicate properly. The officers found the clothes Kuan wore when he committed the crime as well as his Disability Assessment Registration Card.
Leng said that Kuan was intercepted by the police at the Qingmao Port checkpoint when smuggling parallel goods at the end of last year. At that time he was arrested for kicking the table and chairs of the checkpoint’s customs office, causing damage to public property.
At the time of the press conference, Kuan was at the public Conde de S. Januário Hospital Centre to undergo a psychiatric assessment. The case will be sent to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP). Kuan faces an arson charge, according to Leng.
Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Leng Kam Lon looks on during yesterday’s press conference at the PJ headquarters. Photo: Camy Tam
