Police in Hanoi have arrested a 51-year-old suspect for starting a fire that killed 11 people at a coffee shop late on Wednesday evening.

The suspect, C.V.H., a resident of Hanoi’s Dong Anh District, was charged with murder after allegedly setting fire to a café located on Pham Van Dong Street in Bac Tu Liem District at nearly 11:00 pm on Wednesday, the city’s investigation police agency reported early on Thursday. 

After being notified of the blaze at 11:03 pm, local police deployed firefighters, rescuers, 10 fire trucks, and several ambulances to the scene to deal with the incident.

Rescuers later saved seven people from the coffee shop, including five who were found in normal conditions and two who were hospitalized for emergency aid.

Firemen stamped out the fire at 11:30 pm and found 11 people dead in the shop.

Tuan, a local resident, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that there were many people inside the five-story café at the time of the fire, but they could not escape as the blaze began in the entrance area on the ground floor.

The fierce fire consumed a number of motorbikes in the entry area before rising to the floors above, where many people were screaming for help, Tuan narrated.

Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Bui Thi Minh Hoai and Lt. Gen. Nguyen Hai Trung, director of the municipal Department of Public Security, arrived at the scene to direct fire extinguishing and rescue operations.

Suspecting arson, city police launched an investigation and gathered information, which resulted in the arrest of H. around midnight on Thursday, according to the Vietnam News Agency.

Police revealed that H. had two prior convictions for robbery and theft.

“The suspect poured a bucket of petrol on the café’s ground floor, causing the blaze,” a police officer in Bac Tu Liem said.

The man told investigators that he committed the crime following a conflict with the shop’s staff.

H. confessed he had brought petrol to the café and then poured the fuel on the ground floor of the building before setting it on fire. 

Hanoi police are still identifying the victims of the fire and continuing their investigation into the arson.

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