Video from inside a New York City subway car shows the man who allegedly picked up a piece of paper, lit it on fire and then left it near a sleeping man. Photo courtesy Department of Justice
Dec. 6 (UPI) — An 18-year-old high school senior has been charged with lighting a sleeping man on fire on the subway in New York City.
Hiram Carrero, 18, allegedly lit a piece of paper next to a 56-year-old man sleeping on a northbound train earlier this week, the Department of Justice said Friday in an indictment.
“Hiram Carrero showed a complete disregard for human life when he allegedly set a sleeping New Yorker on fire inside a subway car,” Jessica Tisch, commissioner of the New York Police Department, said in a press release. “This attack is among the most serious acts of violence a person can commit, and it has no place in our city — above or below ground.”
According to the Department of Justice, Carrero entered a northbound train, where he picked up a piece of paper on the subway car, lit it on fire near the sleeping man, dropped it and then jumped off the train before the doors closed.
As the train traveled north, the fire flared up, lighting the man’s legs and part of the train on fire, the DOJ said security cameras show.
The burning man left the train when it pulled into the next stop where law enforcement extinguished the fire and took the man to the hospital, where he was admitted in critical condition.
Carrero has been charged with arson resulting in injury to another person, which carries a minimum sentence of seven years in prison, DOJ said.
“The New York City subway is the hear of our city, with millions of people who live and work here relying on it every day,” U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said in the release. “New Yorkers have the right to be safe and feel safe when they ride the subway.”
