By Canadian Press

New York Police identify woman burned to death inside subway train

Dec 31, 2024 | 10:42 AM

NEW YORK (AP) — New York Police announced Tuesday they’ve identified the woman who died on Dec. 22 after being set on fire while inside a New York subway train as a 61-year-old from New Jersey.

The woman, Debrina Kawam, had a Toms River, New Jersey, address, according to NYPD.

Authorities previously said they were using forensics and video surveillance to identify the victim, who burned to death on a subway car in Brooklyn. The man accused of lighting her on fire, Sebastian Zapeta, was taken into custody hours after police disseminated images of a suspect.

He’s since been indicted on murder and arson charges. Zapeta remains jailed. Federal immigration officials say the 33-year-old is from Guatemala and entered the U.S. illegally.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Tuesday that Kawam had a “brief stint in our homeless shelter system” and that authorities had been in contact with her next of kin. He did not say when Kawam was in the homeless system.

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“Hearts go out to the family, a horrific incident to have to live through,” Adams said at an unrelated press briefing. “It impacts on how New Yorkers feel. But it really reinforces what I’ve been saying: People should not be living on our subway system, they should be in a place of care. No matter where she lived that should not have happened.”

Zapeta is accused by prosecutors of lighting Kawam on fire on a stopped F train at Brooklyn’s Coney Island station as she appeared to be sleeping. He then fanned the flames with a shirt, engulfing her in the blaze, before sitting on a platform bench and watching as she burned, prosecutors said.

“This was a malicious deed. A sleeping, vulnerable woman on our subway system,” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said after his indictment was announced.

Zapeta’s indictment is expected to be unsealed on Jan. 7.

The Associated Press