A man has been taken into custody following the tragic death of a woman who was set on fire in a Brooklyn subway car
New York City: Police have arrested a man linked to a shocking incident where a woman was set on fire on a subway train. This happened early Sunday morning on an F train at the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue station.
According to Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch, surveillance footage shows the victim and the suspect were on the train together. As the train arrived at the station, the suspect approached the woman, who might have been asleep, and used a lighter to ignite her clothing.
Officers on patrol noticed smoke and chaos on the platform. They quickly found the woman in the subway car. Sadly, after the fire was put out, she was pronounced dead at the scene.
Thanks to clear images from the surveillance, police were able to catch a person of interest. They got a tip from three high school students who recognized the suspect.
Authorities haven’t released the names of either the suspect or the victim yet. The subway car was idle at the time, often left open for cleaning or service pauses.
This incident marked the second fatality on the subway that day. Earlier, police responded to a stabbing at the 61st Street-Woodside Station in Queens, where one man died and another was injured.
Investigations are ongoing. New York Governor Kathy Hochul has recently deployed National Guard members to assist police in the subway system, especially during the busy holiday season, to help prevent such violent crimes.
