Male poured lighter fluid over himself in front of Parliament

Male poured lighter fluid over himself in front of Parliament.Photo: Helge Rønning Birkelund / ANB / NTB scanpix

Police quickly gained control of an unstable man Wednesday when he poured lighter fluid over himself outside parliament and threatened to ignite it.

– We do not really know the circumstances surrounding the incident, but police have control over the man, said operations manager Marita Aune of Oslo police.

Aune says they have not confirmed the man’s identity yet, but police suspect it is not the first time he has done this.

– I saw a man come to Parliament with a placard which read that he was on hunger strike, says journalist Helge Rønning Birkelund of the Newspaper News Agency ANB to NTB.

He was coming from a job in the Parliament and witnessed the police presence that followed.

– Five or six police cars with sirens drove, and police officers came out with shields. The man threatened to set fire to himself, and the police went into action with fire extinguishers, continued Birkelund.

The man was brought down and police led him to their car. There paramedics took care of him.

Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today