A 33-year-old Guatemalan man was charged Monday with murder and arson after he allegedly set a woman on fire and burned her on a New York City subway train over the weekend, police and federal authorities said. I was watching.
Sebastian Zapeta was arrested about six hours after police say he used a lighter to burn the clothes of a woman who slept on a stationary F train at the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue subway station in Brooklyn. It appeared.
On Monday, he was charged with murder and arson, police said.
The suspect entered the United States without authorization in 2018 and was deported to Guatemala a few days later. It was unclear when he re-entered illegally, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said in a statement.
Police said it appears there was no prior communication between the attacker, a Brooklyn man, and the victim, who has not been identified.
Zappita remains in custody and it was not immediately clear if he has an attorney. He was arrested on Sunday afternoon on a subway train with a lighter in his pocket, police said. He was scheduled to appear in court Monday or Tuesday to face the charges.
Subway workers and police officers patrolling the station used fire extinguishers to extinguish the blaze that engulfed the woman, who was pronounced dead at the scene.
“The depravity of this heinous crime is beyond comprehension, and my office is committed to bringing the perpetrator to justice,” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said in a statement. “This heinous and senseless act of violence against a vulnerable woman will have the most serious consequences.”
The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that Zappetta will pursue removal proceedings again whenever he is released from New York custody, which could include a lengthy prison sentence if convicted. .