Sebastian Zapeta-Calil, a 33-year-old Guatemalan citizen, faces charges of murder and arson after setting a woman on fire as she slept on the subway in New York City.
Authorities said the gruesome attack on the passenger occurred Sunday on the F train at the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue Station, reported NBC News.
CCTV footage shows Zapeta-Calil poured a flammable liquid on the unidentified woman while she slept, and ignited her.
According to prosecutors, Zapeta-Calil used a lighter and fanned the flames with a shirt as the fire consumed her.
As the train door opened, Zapeta-Calil exited the F train and sat on a bench to watch the victim as flames engulfed her body.
A chilling video captured by a witness and uploaded on X shows a woman engulfed in flames as she's burned alive.
He later told law enforcement that he was heavily intoxicated and had no recollection of the heinous attack, said NBC News.
Zapeta-Calil appeared in court on Tuesday with a translator, where the judge ruled the case as a homicide caused by thermal injuries and smoke inhalation.
He is being held without bail.
Zapeta-Calil's next court date is Friday.
The New York Post detailed that the person in question initially entered the U.S. illegally at the Arizona border in 2018. He was detained shortly after and deported back to Guatemala, but managed to cross again undetected and eventually arrived in New York City, where he stayed in various migrant shelters.
Originally published in Latin Times
