A multi-tenant building where the fire broke out is seen in Osaka's Kita Ward on Dec. 17, 2021. (Mainichi/Tatsuya Fujii)

       OSAKA -- The man suspected of setting an Osaka clinic on fire on Dec. 17, killing 25 people, was caught on a security camera throwing a paper bag believed to contain gasoline at an emergency exit, apparently to prevent victims escaping, the Mainichi Shimbun has learned from Osaka Prefectural Police.

       A security camera at the clinic in a multi-tenant building in Osaka's Kita Ward apparently caught Morio Tanimoto, 61, throwing a paper bag at the exit door. Adhesive tape believed to have been used to seal the door from the outside was also found before the incident.

       Police believe that Tanimoto attempted to prevent patients from evacuating from the building.

       Meanwhile, a gasoline component was detected at the burned-out site. Polyethylene containers as well as a blade were also found there.

       The security camera footage showed that Tanimoto visited the clinic with two paper bags in both hands that are believed to have contained gasoline. He tilted one of them, and liquid flowed out on the floor. He then took out a lighter from a pocket, ignited the liquid, and a fire blazed up. After that, he lifted the other paper bag and threw it toward the direction of the emergency exit. All these actions happened in a few minutes.

       Traces of other traps have also been found at the clinic. What appeared to be a repair material was applied in a gap in the door to the fire hydrant embedded in a wall, apparently in a move to prevent the door from opening. Though the emergency exit door had also been sealed from the outside, the adhesive tape was reportedly found and removed by clinic staff on the morning of Dec. 17 just before the fire.

       (Japanese original by Kumiko Yasumoto and Yusuke Kori, Osaka City News Department)

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