Man accused of setting woman on fire in NYC subway faces multiple counts of murder
Subway fire suspect faces murder, arson charges
Sebastian Zapeta, the man accused of setting a homeless woman on fire in a Coney Island subway car, has been indicted on murder and arson charges. Prosecutors say Zapeta, who reentered the U.S. illegally after deportation, faces life without parole if convicted. Authorities are still working to identify the victim. FOX 5's Linda Schmidt has the story.
NEW YORK - Sebastian Zapeta-Calil, the man accused of setting a woman on fire inside a Brooklyn subway train on Sunday, has been charged with multiple counts of murder and arson.
Zapeta-Calil waived his right to appear in court Friday after being indicted on multiple counts of murder.
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez says officials are still looking into surveillance footage in order to identify the woman who burned to death.
A vigil was held Thursday for her, though her identity remains unknown.
Law enforcement sources tell FOX 5 NY that DNA testing was conducted, but the victim has yet to be identified. Authorities believe she was homeless.
According to DA Gonzalez, Zapeta-Calil faces first-degree murder, three counts of second-degree murder and arson.
He is expected back in court on Jan. 7 when the indictment is expected to be unsealed.
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Who is Sebastian Zapeta-Calil?
Zapeta-Calil was arrested by Border Patrol back on June 1, 2018, after he crossed illegally into Sonoita, Arizona. He was deported by the Trump administration just days later on June 7, ICE spokesperson Marie Ferguson told FOX News.
"Sebastian Zapeta-Calil, 33, is an unlawfully present Guatemalan citizen who entered the United States without admission by an immigration official," a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesperson said.
Ferguson added that Zapeta then re-entered the U.S. illegally "on an unknown date and location."
Timeline of events: What happened to the woman set on fire in NYC subway?
According to police, the victim, as well as the suspect, were both riding the F train just before 7:30 a.m. to the Stillwell Avenue Subway station in Coney Island on Sunday, Dec. 22.
Police said the two did not know one another.
"With the help of an MTA employee and a fire extinguisher, the flames were put out. Unfortunately, it was too late." NYPD commissioner Jessica Tisch said.
When the train stopped at the end of the line, police said the suspect calmly walked up to the seated woman and set her on fire with his lighter. The woman's clothing then "became fully engulfed in a matter of seconds," NYPD commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a Sunday press conference.
"Officers who were on patrol on an upper level of that station smelled and saw smoke and went to investigate. What they saw was a person standing inside the train car fully engulfed in flames," Tisch said.
The woman, who has not been identified, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Transit police apprehended the suspect after receiving a report from three high school students who had recognized him. They had seen images of the man taken from surveillance and police body cam video and widely distributed by police.
Unbeknownst to the officers, the suspect had remained at the scene and was seated on a bench on the subway platform, just outside the train car, Tisch said. Body cameras worn by the officers caught a "very clear, detailed look" at the suspect and those images were publicly disseminated.
After later receiving a 911 call from the teenagers, other transit officers identified the suspect on another subway train and radioed ahead to the next station, where more officers kept the train doors closed, searched each car and ultimately apprehended him without incident, said Chief of Transit Joseph Gulotta. The suspect had a lighter in his pocket when he was taken into custody, Tisch said.
Police identified the suspect as 33-year-old Sebastian Zapeta-Calil. He was charged with murder, among other charges.