The Virginia man presumed to have been killed when his house exploded while cops tried to serve a search warrant had posted rambling conspiracy theories — and filed frivolous lawsuits, including one accusing his “witch” ex-wife of committing him “against his will” in New York.
James Yoo, 56, fired a “flare-type gun” from inside his Arlington home into the neighborhood more than 30 times at about 4:45 p.m. Monday, local police Chief Andy Penn said.
When police tried to execute a search warrant and breached his door, Yoo fired several gunshots, Penn said.
A few hours later, the house exploded in a huge fireball that spewed flames and debris into the air.
Investigators have not yet identified human remains found inside the house, but “all factors point to that it’s this individual,” he said of Yoo.
The cause of the blast remains under investigation, Assistant Fire Chief Jason Jenkins said.
“I’m not going to speculate on cause or origin,” he said of the explosion, adding that “the fire department personnel absolutely saved lives” by evacuating neighbors.
A disturbing picture has since emerged of Yoo, with police confirming they were aware of “concerning social media posts.”
He publicly aired grievances against many people in his life, including posting paranoid rants about his neighbors and a former co-worker on his now-disabled LinkedIn account.
He spread rambling and at times incoherent conspiracy theories against government officials, law enforcement, media outlets and his neighbors, whom he accused of being spies and collecting his personal information for unspecified handlers, CNN reported.
Yoo preserved some of his unhinged posts on YouTube along with silent videos showing court filings from federal lawsuits he filed, according to Fox News.
Lawsuits against his ex-wife, younger sister, a moving company and the New York Supreme Court were dismissed as frivolous.
Some of them were described by judges as “convoluted” or “confused.”
In 2018, he 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.
He alleged conspiracy and deprivation of his rights, among other crimes.
He described how his then-wife drove him to Rochester General Hospital in November 2015 “against his will.”
Yoo, who denied having any thoughts of suicide or depression, cited hospital records that cited a suicide note that he left for his wife, which he claimed he never wrote.
In his lawsuits, Yoo also referenced many attempts to contact the FBI.
He wrote that he believed that a New York Times reporter he saw on TV was someone who had claimed to be an FBI agent and came to his house in 2017.
Yoo said the person warned him against trying to contact a US attorney in western New York or he would face a harassment charge.
David Sundberg, assistant director of the FBI’s Washington office, said Yoo had contacted the agency with phone calls, letters and online tips “over a number of years.”
“I would characterize these communications as primarily complaints about alleged frauds he believed were perpetrated against him,” Sundberg said. “The information contained therein and the nature of those communications did not lead to opening any FBI investigations.”
Yoo also reportedly referred to his wife as a “witch” and spewed anti-US slogans, including “F—AMERICA,” and quoted Noam Chomsky, the famed linguist who is a leading critic of American foreign policy and the US involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Yoo’s profile described him as is a “former Head of Information and Physical Security for international telecommunication company,” Fox News reported.
“I gave THEM / Y’ALL every opportunity to ‘do the right thing’ and all I see is America’s hypocrisy, corruption, fraud, conspiracy…” his bio reportedly stated.
On Friday, Yoo posted a rant about a neighbor’s “activity,” stating that “this is how White people operate and have the luxury of outnumbering all other ‘races’ by almost 7 to 1 in ‘Merica,’” according to the outlet.
In late October, he claimed he was being targeted with “hateful messaging” referred to assassination.
The White House was monitoring developments in the case, a spokeswoman said.
“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.
On Tuesday, Aaron Miller, Arlington’s deputy county manager, said 10 houses were impacted by the blast, WUSA reported.
There was no word yet on when the families will be allowed back into their homes.
Neighbor Sam Kim, who saw the explosion from his back porch, called it “surreal.”
“Kind of traumatizing had to talk to my therapist for an emergency session,” he told the news outlet.
The Arlington County Board released a statement on the explosion saying it was “relieved to hear confirmation that last night’s explosion of the duplex in the Bluemont neighborhood did not result in any significant injuries to nearby residents or the officers attempting to bring the related stand-off to a peaceful resolution.
“The Board recognizes the Arlington County Police Department for their patience, skill, and bravery in handling this situation, as well as the Fire Department’s quick response to bringing a rare and challenging explosion under control and minimizing collateral damage,” it said. “We also want to thank the Red Cross for supporting resident evacuations and the FBI and ATF for their assistance in this ongoing investigation.
With Post Wires