Man Sets 'Sleeping' Woman On Fire On New York Subway Train, Sits On Bench And Watches Her Burn

(MENAFN- Live Mint) A man allegedly set a woman on fire while she appeared to be asleep on a New York City subway train on Sunday morning. New York City Police announced Sunday they have in custody a“person of interest”. Police said the suspect remained at the crime scene for a long time.

According to some reports, the man "sat on a bench and watched his victim burn". A purported video of the incident was shared on social media. However, Mint could not independently verify the video.

Addressing a press conference on Sunday, New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the suspect and the woman, both of whom have not been identified, were riding a subway trai without any interaction between them to the end of the line in Brooklyn at around 7:30 am on Sunday.

After the train came to a stop, surveillance video from the subway car showed the man“calmly” walk up to the victim, who was seated motionless, possibly sleeping, and set her clothing on fire with what appeared to be a lighter, the Associated Press reported.

The woman's clothing then“became fully engulfed in a matter of seconds,” Tisch said.

Police said there was no interaction before the attack and they did not believe the two people knew each other.

The man got off the car as police officers on patrol in the station rushed to the blaze.

"What they saw was a person standing inside the train car fully engulfed in flames," New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a press conference.

Officers on a routine patrol at the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue subway station smelled and saw smoke and discovered the woman on fire, standing in the middle of the subway car.

The officers used fire extinguishers to put out the fire but "it was too late." The woman was pronounced dead at the scene by emergency responders, police said.

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. The images were then publicly disseminated.

Cellphone video published on social media by a horrified onlooker showed a man sat on a bench on the platform a few steps away from the burning woman, dressed in a gray hoodie that resembles the one worn by the suspect, who was arrested later on Sunday.

Asked whether the man watching from the bench was the attacker, police said that responding officers had no reason to think he was a suspect when they rushed to the woman's aid.

Police arrested a suspect, who has not been publicly identified, as he rode the subway later on Sunday.

Police said they were still investigating the victim's identity and the reason for the attack.

Mayor Eric Adams said he was grateful "to the young New Yorkers and transit officers who stepped up to help our NYPD make a quick arrest following this morning's heinous and deadly subway attack."

"This type of depraved behavior has no place in our subways and we are committed to working hard to ensure there is swift justice for all victims of violent crime," Adams posted on X.

"My prayers are with the family of the victim in this senseless killing," he added.

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