An illegal alien who was arrested and charged for setting a sleeping woman on fire as she slept on a New York City subway is being protected by state sanctuary laws, preventing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from taking action against him. Sebastian Zapeta-Calil, 33, from Guatemala, set Debrina Kawam, 57, on fire and killed her in Brooklyn’s Coney Island station in December last year. Officials believe Zapeta-Calil used a lighter to set the woman’s clothing on fire. During the incident, an official on patrol found the woman “standing inside the train car fully engulfed in flames.”
Zapeta-Calil has been charged with the woman’s murder.
The illegal migrant reportedly fanned the blaze with a shirt in order to intensify the flames before later observing the horrific scene from a platform bench. The Department of Corrections has failed to honor an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer for Zapeta-Calil due to New York City’s sanctuary city policies. Zapeta-Calil illegally entered the United States in 2018 but was later deported. He then re-entered the country at an unspecified time. Before his arrest, he lived in a Brooklyn shelter and worked as a roofer.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem has demanded Governor Kathy Hochul suspend sanctuary protections immediately following the incident. Meanwhile, Mayor Eric Adams has also called for immediate collaboration between the NYPD and ICE, requesting that federal prosecutors charge Zapeta-Calil in addition to state charges. Last year, Hochul was confronted with statistics contradicting her claim that the state’s “subways are safer.”
“But if you look back to pre-pandemic, now I know you like to say that, that overall crime is down 12% since the pandemic, but murders are up 200%, felony assault is up 55%, and burglary is up 140%,” a reporter told Hochul. “So are you saying that this is progress?”
“Are you talking about state-wide, city, or subway?” a stunned Gov. Hochul asked.
“Oh, crime in the transit system, I’m sorry, crime in the subway system,” he responded.
“You want to answer that?” she asked one of her officials.
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