In New York, on Sunday (Dec 22), a female subway passenger was set on fire by another passenger, while she slept. The man who committed this heinous crime was captured on CCTV and has been apprehended by the New York police.
What happened?
At around 7:30 am, the suspect, as per reports, approached the victim in a train car. Both of them were riding an F train end of the line at Stillwell Avenue in Brooklyn, said NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch.
The suspect intentionally set the victim, who was “motionless,” on fire before fleeing the scene. To carry out the horrific crime, he used a lighter to ignite the victim’s clothing, “which became fully engulfed in a matter of seconds,” said Tisch. The lighter was later found in his pocket.
The fire was put out; however, first responders declared the victim dead at the scene.
Police are yet to identify by name the victim and the suspect. They are now investigating the incident as a homicide.
The “brutal murder” was captured on a security camera inside the subway car, said Michael Kemper, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s chief security officer.
How was the suspect caught?
The suspect, as per Tisch, stayed on the scene after lighting the woman on fire. He was found sitting on a bench on the platform just outside the train car where he committed the murder.
“Unbeknownst to the officers who responded, the suspect had stayed on the scene and was seated on a bench on the platform just outside the train car, and the body-worn cameras on the responding officers produced a very clear, detailed look at the killer,” said Tisch.
Police noted that there was no interaction between the victim and the suspect before the incident, and they believe the two people did not know each other. The motive behind the attack is still under investigation.
(With inputs from agencies)