A stranger set a woman on fire and watched her burn to death on the subway in New York.
The victim and the suspect were riding a subway train without any interaction between them to the end of the line in Brooklyn at around 7.30am local time. After the train came to a stop, CCTV footage 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 Mirror reports.
The woman’s clothing then “became fully engulfed in a matter of seconds. 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 train.
Emergency services were called to the scene but the woman was declared dead. She has not been identified yet.
Unknown to officers, the suspect also remained at the scene and was seated on a bench on the subway platform, just outside the train car.
Police body cam footage captured video of the man, which was later widely distributed to the public in a bid to catch him. After receiving a 911 call from the teenagers, other transit officers identified the man on another subway train and radioed ahead to the next station, where more officers kept the train doors closed.
He was arrested and police found a lighter in his pocket.
New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch described the attack as “one of the most depraved crimes one person could possibly commit against another human being”.
She later praised the people in her city for helping authorities apprehend the person who may be responsible.
Enquiries are ongoing into the incident.
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