Sebastian Zapeta, the man accused of setting a woman on fire on the NYC subway, pleads not guilty in the death of Debrina Kawam.

A woman set on fire inside a New York City subway has raised questions about how a world traveler and former Merck employee ended up homeless and burned on a train.

In December 2024, a woman was brutally set on fire in a New York City subway. She has now been identified as 57-year-old Toms River, New Jersey, resident Debrina Kawam. As the NYPD and Mayor Eric Adams spoke to the press, they explained more details about the terrifying crime.

New York officials have identified the 57-year-old woman who was burned alive inside a subway car in December to be Debrina Kawam, a New Jersey resident.

The New York Police Department ( NYPD) on Tuesday announced they identified the woman who died after being set on fire while inside a New York City subway train as Debrina Kawam. Kawam, 57, had an address in Toms River, New Jersey, according to the NYPD.

The woman who was set on fire on the NYC subway has been identified as Debrina Kawam, of Toms River, New Jersey, police say.

The suspect is accused of setting a sleeping woman's clothes on fire, using his shirt to fan the flames and then sitting on a platform bench nearby.

The man accused of burning a sleeping woman to death inside a NYC subway train pleaded not guilty on Tuesday morning.

Debrina Kawam had an address in Toms River, N.J., and had spent time in New York City's homeless shelter system.

A 61-year-old woman has been idenitified as the NYC subway horror attack's victim after cops initially failed to do so because of how badly she was injured.

New Jersey woman Debrina Kawam was burned to death on the subway. Posts sharing an AI-generated photo misidentified the victim as Amelia Carter.