Preparedness
Subway Horror: Woman’s Fiery Death Sparks Safety Concerns
In a shocking incident that underscores the rising violence in New York City, a woman was tragically set on fire and burned to death while sleeping on a subway train. The New York Police Department reported the grim event, which took place on the F train early Sunday morning.
Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch detailed the harrowing scene in a press conference. As the F train arrived at the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue station, officers discovered a woman engulfed in flames. “A person standing inside the train car fully engulfed in flames,” Tisch described, highlighting the horror faced by responding officers.
The victim was pronounced dead at the scene, and her identity remains unknown. Authorities believe that a man approached the sleeping woman and used a lighter to ignite her clothing. The suspect, a Guatemalan migrant who entered the U.S. in 2018, was arrested in connection with the incident.
In a chilling twist, the suspect reportedly stayed at the scene, watching the woman burn. A video circulating on social media shows the suspect sitting on a bench outside the subway car, observing the unfolding tragedy.
The police managed to apprehend the suspect after releasing his photo to the public. Civilians who recognized him called 9-1-1, leading to his arrest. Officers found the man with a lighter in his pocket, but he was detained without further incident.
Liquor bottles were discovered near the victim, though their relevance to the incident remains unclear. The investigation caused a suspension of the F train service well into the afternoon, with the victim’s body being removed from the scene around 1:00 p.m.
An MTA worker recounted the aftermath, noting that the woman’s clothes appeared “burnt off.” Another witness, Alex Gureyev, expressed concern over the incident, stating, “It’s going down hill a bit. Everybody keeps saying it’s going back to the seventies.”
This tragic event is part of a broader trend of increasing violence on New York City’s subways. According to NYPD data, murders on the subway have surged by at least 60% this year, painting a grim picture of the current state of public safety in the city.
Watch a local news report about the incident below:
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