Man Accused of Setting Sleeping Subway Rider on Fire Pleads Not Guilty

Sebastian Zapeta, the man accused of setting a sleeping subway rider on fire and watching her burn to death, pleaded not guilty to murder and arson charges. The 33-year-old was indicted on one count of first-degree murder, three counts of second-degree murder, and arson. Prosecutors said he fanned the flames before sitting down to watch her burn as police and a subway worker tried to put out the fire.

Zapeta entered the U.S. illegally in 2018 and was deported. He returned to the country at an unknown time and made his way to New York. On December 22, he allegedly lit the woman on fire as she slept on a subway bench. The victim, Debrina Kawam, a 57-year-old from Toms River, New Jersey, was so badly burned that it took more than a week to identify her remains.

Zapeta told detectives he was drunk at the time of the slaying and often blacked out between his home and the subway platform. He said he couldn't remember the attack but admitted that surveillance video showed him on the screen.

Kawam was sitting by herself, believed to be asleep, on a stopped F train at the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue station in Brooklyn. The suspect calmly walked up to her and used a lighter to ignite her clothing, which became fully engulfed in flames within seconds. He then walked off the car to a nearby waiting bench, sat down, and watched as help arrived.

The suspect was arrested after three teenagers riding another subway train recognized him from a wanted poster and called 911. He was taken into custody at the next stop.

Zapeta faces a maximum sentence of life without the possibility of parole if convicted. He is due back in court on March 12.