Man arrested for setting neighbor's house on fire after noise argument

Huynh Tan Duy, 37, is facing attempted murder charges, as his victims managed to escape with injuries.

Huynh Tan Duy at a police station in Can Tho City. Photo by police

An investigation found Duy had argued with his neighbor, a 39-year-old man, on Tuesday night as the latter complained that he opened his door too loudly, causing the his 1-year-old son to cry.

Duy waited until after midnight and brought a gasoline can and an iron string over the neighbor's house, knowing that there were seven people sleeping inside, including two boys aged 1 and 15.

He tied the door with the iron string to prevented people to open it from inside, before splashing gasoline against the house's window to set it on fire. But no fire broke out, so he went back to his home to fetch a mini gas cylinder.

Nguyen Van Diep, another neighbor, spotted Duy's actions and screamed to alert the victims, only to prompt Duy to lock Diep's house from the outside and set it on fire too.

Diep had to call his relatives on the phone to come to his rescue, while managing to escape out of the house.

Motorbikes placed in front of the house that Huynh Tan Duy set fire to, Oct. 24, 2023. Photo by police

Seven people from the first house also managed to escape by breaking down their back door, although two were injured after jumping down from the second floor.

The police sent 20 officers to evacuate people from the area and 30 fire policemen with five fire trucks to put out the fire in around 20 minutes.

The fire destroyed three motorbikes and several items in the first house, causing damage worth nearly VND200 million (US$8,126).