Suspect in deadly New York City subway fire indicted on murder, arson charges

The man accused of killing a woman who was sleeping on a New York City subway car by setting her on fire was indicted by a grand jury on Friday of murder and arson charges, prosecutors announced.

The accused, Sebastian Zapeta, 33, was not present at the brief hearing in a Brooklyn court, the district attorney's office said.

A court-appointed attorney for Zapeta did not immediately respond to a Reuters email seeking comment.

The grand jury charged him with one count of first degree murder, two counts of second degree murder and one count of arson in the first degree, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez told the media. Earlier this week he was accused in a criminal complaint at the Brooklyn criminal court with first-degree murder, second-degree murder and first-degree arson.

"My office is very confident about the evidence in this case and our ability to hold Zapeta accountable for his dastardly deeds," Gonzalez told reporters. He described the attack as a "malicious deed" against "a sleeping and vulnerable woman."

The US Department of Homeland Security has said the suspect is a Guatemalan citizen who entered the country unlawfully and that it would eventually bring removal proceedings against him. He was living in a homeless shelter in Brooklyn, police say.

According to the police account, Zapeta used a lighter to ignite the clothes of a woman who appeared to be sleeping on a stationary F train at the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue subway station on Sunday.

The suspect then used a shirt to fan the fire until the woman was engulfed in flames, the police complaint said.

The woman was pronounced dead at the scene after the fire was extinguished. The city's medical examiner said the cause of death was smoke inhalation and thermal injuries. Police did not immediately know the identify of the woman, according to the complaint.

Zapeta faces life in prison without possibility of parole, Gonzalez said. Zapeta will be arraigned on Jan. 7, the district attorney's office said. —Reuters