Woman Dies After Being Set on Fire on New York Subway

A woman has died after being set on fire aboard a subway train in Brooklyn, New York, and a man has been arrested in connection with the incident.

The tragic event occurred on Sunday morning at the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue Station. Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch described the attack as “one of the most depraved crimes one person could possibly commit against another human being.”

According to authorities, the victim was sitting on a stationary F train when a man approached her and used a lighter to ignite her clothing.

The flames quickly engulfed her, and despite the efforts of officers to extinguish the fire, the woman died at the scene.

The victim, whose identity has not been released, was reportedly “motionless” when set on fire, but police have not confirmed whether she was asleep at the time of the attack. Investigators are still working to determine the motive behind the assault, though there were no signs that the woman and the attacker knew each other.

The attack was discovered when officers on patrol at the station noticed smoke coming from the subway car. “What they saw was a person standing inside the train car fully engulfed in flames,” Commissioner Tisch said.

After the fire was reported, the suspect fled the scene but did not go far. He was found seated on a bench just outside the train car. Police were able to capture clear images of the suspect using body-worn cameras, which were shared with the public.

Later, three high school students recognized the suspect on another subway train and called 911. Officers located him at Herald Square station in Manhattan, near the Empire State Building, where he was arrested. Police found a lighter in his pocket at the time of his arrest.

No charges have been filed yet as authorities continue to investigate the case. The incident has shocked the community, and the NYPD is continuing to gather evidence to understand the full scope of what led to the fatal attack.