A woman has died after being set on fire while sleeping on a New York City subway car. The incident occurred on Sunday morning at around 7.30 a.
m. when the unidentified victim was asleep on board a stationary F train at the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue subway station. According to the New York Police Department, an unknown male approached the woman and lit her on fire using a lighter before leaving the train.
New York City Crime Commissioner Jessica Tisch told reporters Sunday night that the man had committed “one of the most depraved crimes one person could possibly commit against another human being.” The woman had become “fully engulfed in a matter of seconds” Tisch said, adding that officers had been alerted by smoke and extinguished the flames with the help of a MTA employee. Graphic footage of the incident circulated on social media appeared to show fire coming out of the car while horrified bystanders looked on.
The woman was pronounced dead at the scene by first responders. She was found with liquor bottles surrounding her, though it was not immediately clear if they played any part in the fire, sources told the New York Post. An MTA worker told the outlet that it looked like the woman’s clothes were completely “burned off.
” The NYPD later released a photo of the suspect, who is described as a male between 25 and 30 years old, approximately five foot six, and weighs 150 pounds. He was last seen wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt, blue jeans, dark-colored .