A woman who died after being set on fire on the New York City subway earlier this month has been identified as Debrina Kawam, 57, of Toms River, New Jersey, the New York medical examiner’s office said Tuesday.
Kawam was identified through fingerprint analysis and her death from thermal and inhalation injuries was ruled a homicide, said Julie Bolcer, a spokeswoman for the Office of Chief Medical Examiner.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Kawam “spent a brief period in our homeless shelter system,” without providing further details.
Sebastian Zapeta, a 33-year-old Guatemalan national, was charged with murder and arson after he allegedly set Kawam on fire and watched her burn in a subway station.
Zapeta was arrested about six hours after police said he used a lighter to ignite the clothing of Kawam, who appeared to be dozing on a stationary F train at the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue stop in Brooklyn.
The suspect entered the US without authorization in 2018 and was deported to Guatemala a few days later. It was unclear when he unlawfully reentered, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said.
There appeared to have been no previous interaction between the attacker, a Brooklyn man, and Kawam, police said.
The Department of Homeland Security statement said it will resume deportation proceedings once Zapeta is released from New York custody, which could mean a lengthy prison sentence if he is convicted.
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