NEW YORK (AP/1010 WINS) — The man accused of burning a woman to death inside a Brooklyn subway train has been indicted on state charges, including murder, prosecutors said Friday.
Sebastian Zapeta was indicted on one count of first-degree murder, three counts of second-degree murder, and one count of first-degree arson. The top murder charge carries a punishment of life in prison without parole.
Zapeta, 33, waived a court appearance on Friday and remains jailed at Rikers Island. He'll be formally arraigned on Jan. 7, when prosecutors will also unseal the indictment against him.
Brooklyn D.A. Eric Gonzalez revealed Friday that the medical examiner is still trying to identify the woman—who remains a "Jane Doe"—and that they've made some progress in their efforts. "Many investigators are working to identify her," he said.
Gonzalez also reacted to criticism of police, who some have said didn't do enough to help the victim as she was on fire. Gonzalez said an officer at the scene tried to get a fire extinguisher but that was the "most he could do" given the severity of the smoke and flames.
A vigil was held for the victim on Thursday at the Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue station, where she was killed on Sunday morning.
The harrowing attack on a stopped F train has renewed concerns about safety in the nation’s largest mass transit system.
Zapeta, who federal immigration officials said is a Guatemalan citizen who entered the U.S. illegally, was initially charged in a criminal complaint with murder and arson. Such filings are often a first step in the criminal process because, in New York, all felony cases require a grand jury indictment to proceed to trial unless a defendant waives that requirement.
Authorities said Zapeta approached the woman, who might have been sleeping on the train at the subway stop, and set her clothing on fire with a lighter. He waved a shirt at her to fan the fire, causing her to become engulfed in flames, prosecutor Ari Rottenberg said during the court appearance Tuesday.
Zapeta then sat on a bench on the platform and watched as she burned, prosecutors allege. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police took Zapeta into custody while he was riding a train on the same line later that day.
Zapeta told investigators that he drinks a lot of liquor and did not know what had happened, according to Rottenberg.
A Brooklyn address for Zapeta released by police after his arrest matches a shelter that provides housing and substance abuse support.
Federal immigration officials said he was deported in 2018 but returned to the U.S. illegally sometime after that.
1010 WINS contributed to this report.