Via ABC Local:
SAN FRANCISCO — Federal officials said Thursday a fire at the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco was ignited at the front of the building, leading to an arson investigation and calls from the Chinese government for better protection of diplomats in the U.S.
No one was hurt in the Wednesday night blaze that charred the building’s doorway, damaged the lobby and burned upward toward the roof. FBI spokesman Peter Lee said the blaze was caused by a “gas-based device with some accelerants.” No bomb-making materials were found, and there were no traces of an explosion, Lee said. The FBI is leading the investigation.
Consulate workers say surveillance footage showed a person coming out of a van parked outside the compound with two buckets of gasoline, pouring it on the front of the building and setting it on fire, said Wang Chuan, a spokesman for the Chinese consulate in San Francisco.
