New York City police took a man into custody who they believe is connected to the early morning death of a woman who was intentionally lit on fire on a stationary subway train.
The incident took place on Sunday morning aboard an F train at the end of the line at the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue subway station in Brooklyn.
Police commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a Sunday evening press conference that surveillance footage indicated the victim and her assailant were both riding the train early that morning. As the train pulled into the station, the assailant walked up to the woman, who may have been sleeping, Tisch said, and used what authorities believe is a lighter to ignite the victim’s clothing.
Officers on a routine patrol at the station smelled smoke and noticed commotion on the platform, and soon after discovered the unidentified woman standing in the subway car.
After the fire was extinguished, emergency medical personnel declared the woman dead at the scene.
Tisch said detailed images of the assailant had facilitated the apprehension of a person of interest. Transit police apprehended the suspect after receiving a report from three high school students who had recognized the man.
Police did not identify the person in custody. The victim had not been identified yet, authorities said.
The subway car was sitting idle at the end of the line at the time of the incidents. Often, the doors are left open so the train cars can be cleaned or during a temporary pause in service.
The case marked the second fatality on a New York subway on Sunday.
At 12.35am, police responded to an emergency call for an assault in progress at the 61st Street-Woodside Station in Queens and found a 37-year-old man with a stab wound to his torso and a 26-year-old man with multiple slashes throughout his body. The older man was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital while the younger man was in stable condition, police said.
An investigation was continuing.
The New York governor, Kathy Hochul, this year has sent New York national guard members to the city’s subway system to help police conduct random searches of riders’ bags for weapons following a series of high-profile crimes on city trains. Hochul recently deployed additional members to help patrol during the holiday season.
