Chinese officials deny blame after man died in fire while workers demolished his house

A local government in eastern China has denied allegations that it was at fault after a man burned to death in a fire at his home while demolition workers were knocking it down, a newspaper reported.

Officials in Pingyi county near Linyi in Shandong province released a statement on Wednesday saying that Zhang Jimin, 46, had bought nine litres of petrol last week with the intention of killing himself, The Beijing News reported.

The local authority plans to demolish the homes of over 700 households in the farmer’s village and he was in dispute over the level of compensation offered for his house.

Several villagers who witnessed the fire on Monday said dozens of unknown people surrounded the house at noon on Monday and stopped others from going into the building while demolition machinery pulled down its walls.

A villager was quoted in a previous report by the newspaper as saying that he saw the house catch fire after bottles containing yellow liquid were thrown inside.

The victim’s cousin, Zhang Jiyou, had earlier told the Southern Metropolis News that officials had repeatedly tried and failed to persuade the home owner to accept the compensation offer during the past week.