NY - Female passenger died after being set on fire by man on subway - NYC - December 22, 2024

[Ray_of_hope]

It is so sad that no one tried to help her.

Oh yes, absolutely! I can't imagine not helping. It would be a visceral response not a 'should I' or 'shouldn't I' type of situation.

 

[Ray_of_hope]

Sounds it. Police havent mentioned any use of accelerant but the new york post claims she was surrounded by empty liquor bottles

Yes, I read that too. But no further explanation from reporters. Another thing to make you scratch your head and go hmmmmmmmmm.

 

[Ray_of_hope]

What would be possible to do to help in this situation unless you have a fire extinguisher or a fire blanket (which people don't normally carry with them). It'd be really hard to put the fire out without a fire blanket or a fire extinguisher. If you try to use clothing to stop the fire it can just fan the flames.

I think I would have made her drop to the ground, rolled her and placed a coat over her to put out the flames.

 

[Jade]

Who knows. And guess what, who dares to stop him? Who needs a trial hanging over their heads to try to stop crime in NYC?! If nothing else, the "Penny Trial" taught everyone to just MYOB on the subway in NYC.

I disagree I don’t find this comparable to the Penny case.

Was it a full car of witnesses? In a scene that evolved into a threat? I haven’t seen that reporting.

Conversely it could be said the glorification of the Penny killing makes it open season on homelessness. Maybe Daniel Penny will also see the comparison and speak to the press about what the trial taught because I thought he said he was not ashamed and it wouldn’t deter him to do what he thought was right. I never heard him say he would advise others to walk away but that’s off topic anyway, imo.

Coming across a scene of a fully involved fire what more can you do but start yelling drop, roll and find an extinguisher which the officer did.

Apparently the officer put out the fire.

A polar fleece layer and down jacket made polyester would be about all most would have on hand, imo, but maybe commuters with a nice heavy long wool coat.

I don’t see any point in blaming bystanders or attributing deliberately antisocial actions to an absolutely horrible and unexpected encounter.

The observer was evidentially the attacker.

All imo

 

[jjenny]

If a coat is made from the flammable material, I imagine it could make the fire worse. For instance, I wear a puffer polyester jacket. I don't think that would be good for stopping the fire. Anyhow, sounds like this all happened very quickly and cops stopped the fire with a fire extinguisher, but it was too late.
I don't see the need to blame bystanders here.

 

[nao]

Moo...he looks kinda blank. People with severe mental health problems do not always think logically which can make their actions dangerous for any random person in their vicinity. That he comes from Guatemala is not the reason for this woman's tragic ending....moo

 

[Deleted member 350315]

MOO: I believe this parked subway train was acting as a de facto homeless shelter for the severely mentally ill. Not uncommon. Get on the 7 out near JFK and you’ll see this 365 nights of the year post-COVID. MOO: it amazes me how severe this has to get before a reckoning happens, but in some ways this reminds me of Times Square in the 1990s. It had to get truly terrifying for everyone who stepped foot in it before we mustered the will as a society to get behind turning it around.

I believe you mean the E train, whose final stop (Jamaica Center) provides a connection to the JFK AirTrain? At no point along its route is the 7 train anywhere near JFK. Its final stop, in Main Street, Flushing, is in Northern Queens, some 6.5 miles from the more southerly-located JFK.

 

[Sweeper2000]

Weirdly enough the perpetrator can be seen approaching her and seeming to try and put the fire out with his jumper. I don't think he's trying to fan the flames but he stands a few metres away and waves his hoodie or something at her.

 

[jjenny]

Weirdly enough the perpetrator can be seen approaching her and seeming to try and put the fire out with his jumper. I don't think he's trying to fan the flames but he stands a few metres away and waves his hoodie or something at her.

Where did you see that? In the video I saw, he was just sitting on a bench. Also, waving a hoodie at her from a few meters away is not going to put the fire out. He could have been pretending being a good Samaritan, I suppose.

 

[Marysmith]

Who knows. And guess what, who dares to stop him? Who needs a trial hanging over their heads to try to stop crime in NYC?! If nothing else, the "Penny Trial" taught everyone to just MYOB on the subway in NYC.

Respectfully I would hope that someone that could have would not hesitate to help someone in this nightmarish situation because of the Penny trial. That was a completely different situation, and Neely never actually touched or even spoke to anyone directly - yes, people were scared though.

 

[jjenny]

Respectfully I would hope that someone that could have would not hesitate to help someone in this nightmarish situation because of the Penny trial. That was a completely different situation, and Neely never actually touched or even spoke to anyone directly - yes, people were scared though.

It would be difficult to actually help without proper tools like a fire extinguisher or a fire blanket. I understand the desire to blame someone for this, but realistically to put out a fire like that, proper tools were necessary. This was not a small fire by the time she was standing and visible from outside the train. If you start waiving your clothing at her you would just fan the flames and could get your own clothing on fire.

 

[Deleted member 39678]

If only there was a nearby citizen who could have restrained the killer before he set the victim on fire.

JMO.

 

[Marysmith]

It would be difficult to actually help without proper tools like a fire extinguisher or a fire blanket. I understand the desire to blame someone for this, but realistically to put out a fire like that, proper tools were necessary. This was not a small fire by the time she was standing and visible from outside the train. If you start waiving your clothing at her you would just fan the flames and could get your own clothing on fire.

Of course!

 

[jjenny]

If only there was a nearby citizen who could have restrained the killer before he set the victim on fire.

JMO.

There was no one else there, but unless one can read minds, I don't think it would have been possible even if someone was there. From the description the victim was set on fire and engulfed in seconds. I don't think one could predict that she would have been set on fire ahead of time.

 

[jjenny]

This article gives a modified last name for the suspect.

Man charged in woman's burning death on NYC subway was deported from U.S. in 2018

The Guatemalan man, who officials say was in the U.S. illegally, is accused of lighting a sleeping woman on fire.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[Deleted member 39678]

There was no one else there, but unless one can read minds, I don't think it would have been possible even if someone was there. From the description the victim was set on fire and engulfed in seconds. I don't think one could predict that she would have been set on fire ahead of time.

I guess we'll never know for sure if it would have been possible for a citizen to intervene. But I don't count it out.

One other possibility is even if a person was standing right next to the victim they may not have wanted to get involved. JMO.

 

[GRT]

This article gives a modified last name for the suspect.

Man charged in woman's burning death on NYC subway was deported from U.S. in 2018

The Guatemalan man, who officials say was in the U.S. illegally, is accused of lighting a sleeping woman on fire.

www.nbcnews.com

Thank you! From your link...

"Federal officials said they will file a request for Zapeta-Calil to be turned over to ICE after the criminal case against him is over. That immigration detainer could allow for him to be deported."

Certainly, he'll be charged with murder and locked up now, right? Someone who can light another human being on fire should never see the light of day again. And, he already entered illegally after being deported. Why would he get the chance to do that again?

 

[GRT]

I guess we'll never know for sure if it would have been possible for a citizen to intervene. But I don't count it out.

One other possibility is even if a person was standing right next to the victim they may not have wanted to get involved. JMO.

It's too dangerous to get involved these days. This is the world we live in now because if you do intervene, you could very well be charged with a crime.

 

[jjenny]

Thank you! From your link...

"Federal officials said they will file a request for Zapeta-Calil to be turned over to ICE after the criminal case against him is over. That immigration detainer could allow for him to be deported."

Certainly, he'll be charged with murder and locked up now, right? Someone who can light another human being on fire should never see the light of day again. And, he already entered illegally after being deported. Why would he get the chance to do that again?

As far as I can tell he won't be deported before serving his time if convicted.

 

[Skigh]

Illegal migrant who set woman on fire on subway snuck back into US

Sebastian Zapeta-Calil has been charged with murder and arson in the first degree after a woman burned to death on the F train in Brooklyn just before 7.30am on Sunday, police told DailyMail.com.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Chilling footage showed the moment a man in a hoodie sat on the platform at Stillwell Avenue in Coney Island and watched as the woman became engulfed by flames.

Police said Zapeta-Calil lit the unnamed passenger on fire as she slept on board the train before sitting back to watch her burn as she leaned dying on the carriage door.

Zapeta-Calil can even be seen fanning the flames in one clip while other New Yorkers filmed the horror on their phones and cops walked on by.

Anonymous sources have told the New York Post that Zapeta-Calil was in the country illegally after previously being deported at the Arizona border in June 2018. It's unclear how he got back into the US.

Zapeta-Calil appeared stony-faced as officers escorted him out of the Coney Island police custody building on Monday. He fixed his eyes on the ground while wearing police-issued white overalls