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- Arlington elementary schoolers cheer on the Washington Capitals during playoff pep rally
- AP AUDIO: Suspect who fired at Virginia officers from a duplex before it exploded is thought to be dead.
- BREAKING: Large house explosion in Bluemont amid police incident
- MORE: 4 people fatally stabbed, 2 officers injured in NYC knife attack: Police
- Police Participate in Spring 2024 Street Smart Campaign
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The officers escaped serious injury but it was unclear what happened to the suspect who was inside when the building was leveled, an Arlington county police spokesperson, Ashley Savage, said. Police officials at the site suffered minor injuries while gas service to the home was turned off. They also said there is no ongoing threat to the public and no other suspects. One dead body was found in the house, suspected to be Yoo’s, and around 10 to 12 surrounding homes were also affected by the blast. “The fire department personnel absolutely saved lives” by evacuating residents of the neighborhood, Jenkins said.
Arlington elementary schoolers cheer on the Washington Capitals during playoff pep rally
As officers tried to enter the home, multiple gunshots were fired from within the house, Penn said. Penn said police responded to the house at about 4.45pm on Monday after reports of shots fired. Over the years, he also made many attempts to contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) through phone calls, letters and online tips, according to lawsuits and David Sundberg, the assistant director of the FBI’s Washington field office. Authorities are still investigating the cause of the explosion that was felt miles from the site, while Yoo’s troubling relationships with people in his life have come to the fore through details of his own social media posts and lawsuits. 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.
AP AUDIO: Suspect who fired at Virginia officers from a duplex before it exploded is thought to be dead.
No public record could be found indicating that a sale took place. Stephanie Yoo and a divorce attorney who represented her did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday. About 10 households were impacted by the incident, authorities said. Right before the explosion, police were using "nonflammable" chemical munitions to draw the suspect out of the home, Penn said.
BREAKING: Large house explosion in Bluemont amid police incident
“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. Yoo, who inherited the house from his parents, stated in unsuccessful legal filings over the years that he had long suffered from alcoholism. Arlington County Police Chief Andy Penn said at a news briefing Tuesday that the investigation of the explosion was ongoing and that the Virginia medical examiner’s office had yet to positively identify the person whose remains were found. A duplex, where a suspect was involved in an ongoing incident with police, exploded in a massive fireball as police, including a SWAT armored vehicle, moved in.
MORE: 4 people fatally stabbed, 2 officers injured in NYC knife attack: Police
"I would characterize these communications as primarily complaints about alleged frauds he believed were perpetrated against him," Sundberg told reporters. "The information contained therein and the nature of those communications did not lead to opening any FBI investigations." 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. A massive explosion engulfed a home and rocked a neighborhood in Arlington, Virginia, as police were investigating a man who fired a flare gun dozens of times from inside Monday night, police said. James Yoo is presumed dead after the Arlington residence went up in a fireball as police officers tried to serve a search warrant, authorities said Tuesday.
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Penn noted that officials are aware of "concerning" social media posts allegedly made by Yoo, adding that they will be reviewed as part of the investigation. After they obtained a search warrant for the house in the 800 block of North Burlington Street, officers "attempted to make contact with the suspect over the telephone and through loudspeakers," police said in a statement. He “previously communicated with the FBI via phone calls, online tips and letters over a number of years,” said Dave Sundberg, the assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Washington field office. “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. Emergency management officials said 10 to 12 surrounding homes were damaged by the blast.
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"And it was just very unusual. And before we even got the chance to make a welfare check call, there were flares going up and the police were already there." In a LinkedIn post Friday, Yoo appeared to accuse his neighbors of being spies. In his social media writings, Yoo called himself an independent and posted ranting hashtags calling for defunding the FBI, the CIA and the National Security Agency. The cause of the explosion is still unknown and under investigation. Records show he sold a property in McLean, Va., for $1 million in 2021, after being ordered to do so by a judge in his divorce case. “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.
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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. Three officers reported minor injuries in the house explosion, but no one was taken to the hospital. Savage said police did not have any evidence that others were in the duplex but could not rule out the possibility. 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.
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Suspect In Arlington House Explosion Presumed Dead: Police - Patch
Suspect In Arlington House Explosion Presumed Dead: Police.
Posted: Mon, 04 Dec 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]
Chief Andy Penn of the Arlington County Police Department declined to say at a news conference on Tuesday that the authorities were “fully confident” that the remains that were found were those of Mr. Yoo. Bob Maynes thought a tree had fallen on his house as the blast shook his property. No serious injuries were suffered by police; the fate of the suspect who was inside the home when it exploded was not immediately clear, authorities said. "Based on the preliminary investigation of the incident, we believe the resident of the home, James Yoo, 56, of Arlington, is the involved suspect," Penn said.
Man at center of standoff before Arlington house explosion presumed dead - WTOP
Man at center of standoff before Arlington house explosion presumed dead.
Posted: Tue, 05 Dec 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]
Soon after police arrived to investigate, an explosion occurred and the house burst into flames. “Our thoughts are with the police officers that were injured in that explosion,” Olivia Dalton, the White House principal deputy press secretary, told reporters on Air Force One on Tuesday. 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. David Sundberg, assistant director in charge of the FBI's Washington Field Office, told reporters that Yoo had communicated with the FBI via phone calls, online tips and letters over a number of years. Video posted to social media showed the house disappearing under a ball of fire, lobbing debris into the night air and sending wreckage raining down onto the suburb of Washington, D.C. Neighbors said the blast could be heard and felt for miles.
A house in Arlington, Va., exploded into flames on Monday night while the police were preparing to search it after reports of gunfire and a standoff with the man who lived there. Carla Rodriguez of South Arlington went to the scene after she heard the blast more than 2 miles away, but she was kept away by police. While the cause of the explosion is still under investigation, the blast appears to have permanently shaken some neighbors.
Fire officials do not know the cause of the explosion, said Nate Hiner, a spokesperson for the Arlington fire department. Carla Rodriguez of south Arlington said she could hear the explosion more than two miles away and came to the scene but police kept onlookers blocks away. After attempts to communicate with Yoo were unsuccessful, police obtained a search warrant.
They left and returned with body armor and a warrant to seize weapons Yoo may have had. Other neighbors heard the commotion from officers trying to bring Yoo into custody. In an effort to compel Yoo to surrender, Penn said the officers deployed "nonflammable, less-lethal chemical munitions" where Yoo was believed to be hiding. 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.
It followed the suspect repeatedly firing a flare gun over nearby Fields Park. Fire department crews are still assessing the damage to the home and other surrounding homes to determine if the area is safe. Atmos Energy said its technicians were called to the scene to check on the company's system in the area, and the Railroad Commission of Texas said Monday it is also investigating the explosion. On Monday night in Arlington County, in the US state of Virginia, at least 30 shots were fired inside a residence.
The suspect who fired at officers from a duplex in an Arlington, Virginia, neighborhood before the home exploded on Monday night is presumed dead, according to authorities. "At this point, officers experienced what is believed to be multiple gunshots from a firearm coming from within the dwelling," Penn said. "Human remains have been located at the scene, and the office of the chief medical examiner will work to positively identify the individual and determine the cause and manner of death," Penn told reporters during an afternoon news conference on Tuesday.
One post from three days ago rants against his neighbors in the adjoining duplex unit. Alex Wilson, the neighbor who took the video seen above — and shared worldwide on social media tonight — told ARLnow that the resident of the home was firing a rifle at police as they used the SWAT vehicle to try to get inside. Investigators are looking into a reported explosion that happened Saturday morning at an Arlington home that was under construction, officials said. Another Instagram post from the same account, citing a different source, also blamed the blast on an alleged firefight.
