Local law enforcement said they finally identified the woman burned alive while riding on a New York City subway car earlier in December, ending days of public speculation.
Debrina Kawam, a 61-year-old woman from Toms River, New Jersey, is the individual who was burned alive while riding the F train in Brooklyn on the morning of Dec. 21, the New York Police Department (NYPD) confirmed to the Daily Caller News Foundation. The man charged with the attack is Sebastian Zapeta-Calil, a 33-year old previously deported Guatemalan national who is living in the United States unlawfully.
After days of law enforcement failing to identify the victim and no apparent family or friends coming forward, some speculated that the victim may have been homeless. The NYPD on Tuesday gave no further details about Kawam beyond her name, age and home address.
The gruesome details of the attack sparked national media coverage, and once again spotlighted the issue of illegal migrant crime in the U.S.
Investigators believe Kawam was sleeping on the train when Zapeta walked up to her and used a match to light her clothes on fire, which quickly became fully engulfed in flames. The illegal migrant then allegedly remained on scene, sitting on a bench platform, to watch her die from her injuries.
“As the train pulled into the station, the suspect calmly walked up to the victim who was in a seated position at the end of the subway car,” New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch stated during a press conference shortly after the incident. “The suspect used what we believe to be a lighter to ignite the victim’s clothing, which became fully engulfed in a matter of seconds.”
Local police who were on patrol at an upper level of that train station went to investigate after they smelled and saw smoke, according to Tisch, who described the attack as “one of the most depraved crimes one person could possibly commit” against another human being. Upon their arrival to the scene, officers discovered the victim standing in the train fully engulfed in fire, and made attempts to put the fire out.
Zapeta was apprehended by the NYPD later that day after witnesses had spotted him, and he was caught with a lighter in his pocket. It was later revealed that, while Kawam was on fire, he allegedly intentionally fanned the flames by waving a shirt over her.
An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) spokesperson confirmed to the DCNF that Zapeta is an illegal migrant who had already been deported from the country years prior.
“U.S. Border Patrol in Sonoita, Arizona, encountered Zapeta June 1, 2018, and served him with an order of expedited removal and Enforcement and Removal Operations removed Zapeta from the U.S. to Guatemala June 7, 2018,” the agency stated to the DCNF. “Zapeta unlawfully reentered the United States on an unknown date and location.”
The Guatemalan national has since been charged with first and second degree murder and arson. He is due to be arraigned on Jan.7, 2025.
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