A woman was killed on the New York City subway Sunday morning after a man set her clothes on fire with a lighter, what authorities are calling a “brutal murder” and an example of “depraved behavior.”
The suspect was arrested at another subway station in Manhattan about eight hours after the attack, police said.
Police initially believed the victim was asleep at the time of the attack. Although it is unclear whether the victim was asleep, she was “motionless” when the attack began, police said Sunday.
The attacker approached the woman without saying a word, set her clothes on fire and she was engulfed in flames “in a matter of seconds”, police said. Security camera footage appears to show the suspect sitting on a station bench and watching the woman being burned as officers respond.
“Unbeknownst to the responding officers, the suspect remained at the scene and was sitting on a bench on the platform outside the subway, and the body cameras on the responding officers produced a very clear and detailed view of the killer,” said the commissioner. of the police. The suspect appeared calm when he initially approached the victim.
He is under arrest pending charges in an ongoing investigation, a police spokesperson told CNN .
Police have not identified the suspect other than to say he is an immigrant from Guatemala. The victim was not identified.
An NYPD spokesperson told CNN More details will be released soon.
THE CNN contacted U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement but did not immediately receive a response.
The attack occurred around 7:30 a.m. local time on an F train bound for Stillwell Avenue in Brooklyn, they said.
Police said they do not believe the victim and suspect knew each other.
Security camera video from inside the subway car showed the suspect lighting a blanket the victim was wearing, and the fire expanded until the victim was standing upright while engulfed in flames, said John Miller, chief analyst for the CNN for law enforcement and intelligence, in the “CNN Newsroom.”
Police camera and surveillance footage was instrumental in apprehending the suspect, authorities said at a press conference on Sunday (22) afternoon. Police released body camera footage to the public, and three high school-aged New Yorkers recognized the suspect and called police, Tisch said.
“Our officers in District Two stopped the train at Herald Square, and (were) able to keep the doors closed, walk the train and place this very dangerous individual into custody,” said NYPD Transit Chief Joseph Gulotta. .
The 34th Street-Herald Square station, in bustling midtown Manhattan, is next to the Macy’s department store that was featured in the 1947 film “It Is It Too.”
The suspect was found with a lighter in his pocket, the commissioner said.
A $10,000 reward was offered for information about the suspect.
No other passengers or first responders were injured in the incident, police said.
New York Mayor Eric Adams on Sunday (22) praised the people who helped alert authorities about the suspect.
“This type of depraved behavior has no place in our subways and we are committed to working hard to ensure there is swift justice for all victims of violent crimes,” Adams said in an X post.
Authorities at the press conference on Sunday (22) noted the role of technology in quickly tracking the suspect.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul on Wednesday announced efforts to beef up subway security ahead of the holidays, sending 250 more National Guard members to New York and ensuring every subway car is equipped with surveillance cameras. security.
The “brutal murder” was captured on one of those cameras, according to Michael Kemper, chief security officer at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
“The key was getting identification through body cameras,” Felipe Rodriguez, a retired NYPD detective sergeant and adjunct professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said on “CNN Newsroom” Sunday.
The crime marked the second death on a New York subway on Sunday (22). At about 12:35 p.m., a stabbing case on a southbound 7 train at the 61 St-Woodside station in Queens resulted in one death and another injury, the news affiliate reported. CNN WABC. Authorities detained a 26-year-old man, whose identity was not released.
Hochul’s office says crime has dropped 10% since the governor announced a subway safety plan in May and 42% since January 2021, although a series of high-profile violent crimes on the subway system in recent years have left some residents worried.
The city was under a “Code Blue” alert Saturday night as additional resources and shelter are deployed to help those vulnerable to the freezing temperatures, especially homeless people, who sometimes seek shelter in the subway system during severe weather. .
This content was originally published in Suspect arrested after setting fire and killing woman in New York subway on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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