An Arlington, Virginia, man who is suspected of firing a flare gun and gunshots before his home exploded during a standoff Monday night is believed to be dead by investigators, who have found human remains in the charred debris.
James Yoo, 56, of Arlington, Virginia, was identified by police as the suspect during a news conference on Tuesday afternoon.
The hours leading up to the explosion
During the news conference Tuesday, Police Chief Andy Penn said officers were called to a duplex on North Burlington Street in the Bluemont neighborhood for reports of possible shots fired at around 4:45 p.m. on Monday. Yoo fired more than 30 shots from a flare gun while inside the home, police said.
Officers’ attempts to engage with Yoo weren’t successful.
“A search warrant was ultimately obtained to allow our officers to secure any weapons to ensure there will be no ongoing threat to the community,” Penn said.
Police again tried to communicate with Yoo to no avail. Penn said officers breached the front door “to allow for communications and possibly surrender.”
The fire department turned off the home’s gas before the explosion in an “attempt to mitigate risk,” according to assistant fire chief, Jason Jenkins.
When officers tried to come inside at around 8:30 p.m., Penn said Yoo shot multiple rounds from a “suspected” firearm.
“Officers could not locate the source of the suspected gunfire or its intended target,” Penn said. “Officers began to deploy non-flammable less lethal chemical munitions to multiple areas within the residence where the suspect was believed to be hiding. The purpose of this type of a deployment is to cause irritation in hopes of compelling the suspect to surrender.”
The home then exploded, with video showing a fireball travel into the sky. Yoo was inside at the time and is presumed dead by authorities.
Warning: The video below contains explicit language.
Video of the explosion. Hope everyone was out of the house#Arlington #ballston @ARLnowDOTcom @RealTimeNews10 pic.twitter.com/JSZE7LkoTD
— c “” maj (@connormaj) December 5, 2023
“Human remains had 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 said.
No one else was seriously hurt, and there’s no ongoing threat to the public, Penn said.
Where the duplex once stood is now a pile of debris.
What we know about the suspect
Arlington police don’t have prior documented interactions with Yoo, outside of two noise complaints over the past couple of years, Penn said.
On LinkedIn, Yoo recently posted paranoid rants about his neighbors and a former co-worker.
“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.
David Sundberg, the Assistant Director in Charge of the Washington Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, said that Yoo had previously communicated with the FBI via calls and online tips and letters over the years.
“I would characterize these communications, as primarily complaints about alleged frauds he believed were perpetrated against him, the information contained therein, and the nature of those communications did not lead to opening any FBI investigations,” Sundberg said.
Yoo filed four lawsuits in federal court between 2018 and 2022. Each case was dismissed as frivolous, while some were described by judges as “convoluted” or “confused.” One of Yoo’s lawsuits was more than 300 pages long.
In 2018, Yoo filed a 163-page federal lawsuit in New York against his then-wife, younger sister and a hospital after he said he was committed against his will. Yoo alleged conspiracy and deprivation of his rights, among other crimes.
Neighbors were suspicious of the house before the explosion. Melissa Hernandez said she often walked her dogs on a trail nearby the house, though she’s never seen the homeowner.
The home had no trees or bushes, she said.
“There’s always paper over all the windows, except for a single no trespassing sign,” Hernandez told WTOP. “Whereas all the neighbors always had holiday lights and gardens and were out and would wave to each other.”
Where things stand Tuesday as questions remain unanswered
While the fire burned well into the night, a shelter-in-place for residents was lifted and the flames were completely extinguished by Tuesday afternoon, Jenkins said.
The smell of char remained in the area and the cause of the explosion isn’t known.
“There is no timeline for that investigation to determine the cause and origin it’s simply going to take time,” Jenkins said.”
The explosion itself has complicated efforts to investigate, Penn said. Arlington County police established a yellow police tape perimeter of at least a block from the house.
“The scene is beyond where it occurred, there was an explosion, so evidence is clearly displaced,” the police chief said.
Fire arson experts, bomb techs and canines with the ATF remained on the scene as officials work to determine the cause and origin.
Officials evacuated other residents who lives in the duplex as well as neighbors in the area ahead of the explosion which Jenkins said, “saved lives, period.”
Nearby homes were rattled by the explosion, with some windows shattered by the impact. Debris was found several streets away from the home.
About 10 households were damaged, according to Aaron Miller, the deputy county manager for public safety for Arlington County. Those residents have been offered support in various forms including housing, necessities like toiletries and mental health counseling.
“We’re going to ask for the community’s patience as the surrounding area will remain closed for this for the foreseeable future,” Miller said.
The “powerful” explosion frightened nearby residents, including Alex Kowalski, who moved to the neighborhood 20 years ago.
“I was in my house last night and heard a large boom and then felt the house shake, thought that a tree had fallen and then came outside, my neighbors were all looking around trying to understand what happened,” Kowalski said.
The Associated Press as well as WTOP’s Nick Iannelli, Neal Augenstein, Luke Lukert and Ciara Wells contributed to this story.
