Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez on Tuesday announced that a homeless man was charged with first-degree murder and related counts for allegedly setting a woman on fire as she slept inside a subway car in Coney Island, Brooklyn.
The District Attorney identified the defendant as Sebastian Zapeta, 33, who resided in an East New York shelter, according to a press release. The defendant was arraigned before Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Danny Chun on an indictment in which he is charged with first-degree murder, three counts of second-degree murder and first-degree arson.
According to the investigation, on Dec. 22, 2024, at about 7:25am, the victim was sleeping inside an F train that had reached its terminus at the Stillwell Avenue Station in Coney Island. Video surveillance showed the defendant, who rode the same car as the victim from Queens, use what appears to be a lighter to set fire to fabric that covered the sleeping woman, identified as Debrina Kawam of Toms River, N.J.
The evidence further shows the defendant first watched from inside the car as the fire grew then used what looks like a shirt to fan it until the victim became engulfed in flames. He was then seen watching the blaze from a bench on the platform before walking away.
Police quickly identified the defendant and distributed his image to the media. Police received a tip that he was aboard an F train near the Herald Square-34th Street Station, and he was apprehended a little before 4:00pm the same day.
“It is difficult to fathom what could lead someone to commit the atrocious and horrific murder with which this defendant is charged," Gonzalez said. "Ms. Kawam and her loved ones deserve a measure of justice and New Yorkers deserve to feel safe in the subways.”
The defendant was held without bail and ordered to return to court on March 12. He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
