The man accused of killing a New York City subway passenger by setting her on fire was charged Friday with four counts of murder and one count of arson, prosecutors announced.
Sebastian Zapeta-Calil, 33, a Guatemalan national, had been charged by police with first-degree murder, second-degree murder and first-degree arson in connection with setting the woman on fire while she was sleeping on a stopped F train. the Stillwell Avenue Subway Station on the morning of December 22.
She was pronounced dead at the scene. A vigil was held Thursday for the woman, who has not yet been identified.
On Friday, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced that Zapeta-Calil was indicted by a grand jury on one count of first-degree murder and three counts of second-degree murder, as well as one count of arson in first grade.
The first-degree murder charge carries the possibility of life in prison without parole.
Gonzalez said the indictment will be revealed in court on Jan. 7, when he will be arraigned.
Zapeta-Calil appeared in court in Brooklyn on Tuesday and was taken back into custody. He did not plead guilty.
During that hearing, a prosecutor said the suspect allegedly set the woman on fire with a lighter. Once she was engulfed in flames, he allegedly continued to “fan the flames with a shirt.” Zapeta-Calil later told police that he “drinks a lot of liquor” and “doesn’t know what happened,” the prosecutor added.
Zapeta-Calil is in the United States illegally and had previously been deported, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said.
He entered the country through Sonoita, Arizona, on June 1, 2018 and was expelled from the United States and returned to Guatemala days later, on June 7, 2018.
It is not known where or when he illegally reentered the country, ICE said. Federal officials said they will file a request for Zapeta-Calil to be turned over to ICE once the criminal case against him ends.
In Sunday’s attack, Zapeta-Calil allegedly “calmly” approached the woman while she was sleeping and used a lighter to light her clothes, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch previously said. He then exited the subway and sat on a bench on the platform and was captured on the body camera of a responding officer.
That image was then posted to the public in a search flyer. Hours later, three high school-aged passengers saw him on the train and called 911 and detained him.
Although officials have not identified the victim, the medical examiner determined that her death was a homicide and that the cause was “thermal injuries and smoke inhalation,” according to court documents.