Woman set on fire in the subway identified as Debrine Kawam – Telemundo New York (47)

The authorities have released the identity of the sleeping woman burned to death inside a New York City subway train by a man who allegedly set it on fire and stayed to watch the aftermath, officials said Tuesday.

The woman identified in the attack on the F train at Brooklyn’s Coney Island station earlier this month was named Debrina Kawam. He was 61 years old and his last known address was New Jersey. New York City Mayor Eric Adams says Kawam also spent some time in the city’s shelter system. No additional details were available.

Sebastian Zapeta He has been accused by prosecutors of setting the woman on fire, then fanning the flames with a shirt, causing her to become engulfed in the fire, before sitting on a bench on the platform and watching as she burned.

“This was a malicious act. A sleeping, vulnerable woman in our subway system,” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said after a brief court hearing where the indictment was announced last week.

He said Zapeta has been charged with multiple counts of murder, as well as arson. The main charge carries a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole. The indictment will be announced on January 7.

Zapeta, 33, was not present at the hearing and his lawyer declined to comment afterward.

Zapeta, who federal immigration officials say is a Guatemalan citizen who entered the United States illegally, was detained Sunday. During police questioning, prosecutors say he claimed not to know what had happened and noted that he consumes alcohol, but identified himself in photographs and surveillance videos showing the fire.

A Coney Island community held a prayer vigil for a homeless woman who was set on fire and burned alive on the F train, while her attacker allegedly sat and watched. NBC New York’s Chris Jose reports.

The harrowing episode has renewed debate over safety on the country’s largest public transportation system.

In general, crime on the subway is relatively rare, and the trains and platforms are typically as safe as any other public place in New York City. Police data shows serious crime fell this year through November, compared to the same period in 2023.

But homicides increased, with nine murders through November compared to five during the same period last year. That figure does not include the woman who was burned to death or a man who was fatally stabbed in a Queens subway station on the same day.

High-profile attacks, such as stabbings and shovings, also make many passengers nervous in a city where millions of people travel by rail every day.