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Woman burned to death in horrific subway attack identified: police

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Woman burned to death in horrific subway attack identified: police

The woman who was heinously burned alive in a New York City subway car last week has been identified as a 57-year-old woman from New Jersey, Fox News Digital has learned.

Police tell Fox News Digital the woman has been identified as Debrina Kawam of Toms River, a township and coastal town located on the Jersey Shore in Ocean County. Kawam was lit on fire and burned to death on a subway train in Brooklyn, New York, on Dec. 22.

Officials were unable to identify Kawam’s body for days after the attack because she was so severely burned. The NYPD did not provide an official cause of death.

Police investigate at the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue Station in Brooklyn after a woman aboard a subway car was set on fire and died in New York, United States on Dec. 22, 2024. Police believe the woman had been sleeping aboard the train when a man approached her and set her on fire. She was pronounced dead at the scene. (Kyle Mazza/Anadolu via Getty Images)

SANCTUARY CITY NEW YORK PRESSURED TO MAKE DRASTIC CHANGE AFTER ILLEGAL MIGRANT ALLEGEDLY BURNS WOMAN ALIVE

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The homeless nonprofit Coalition for the Homeless previously stated that the victim may have been homeless at the time of her death. Police were unable to confirm if she was homeless.

The New York Post, citing police sources, reports that Kawam had been living in New York City shelters since at least Sept. 9 and had been given a bed at the Franklin Williams Women’s Shelter in the Bronx on Nov. 30 but left on Dec. 2.

WATCH: Eric Adams discusses subway burning victim Debrina Kawam

On Tuesday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said he did not have any additional information on Kawam, other than that she had a brief stint in the city’s homeless shelter system.

“Our hearts go out to her family. A horrific incident to have to live through,” Adams told reporters at a daily press briefing. 

“Just watching that tape, just really I couldn’t watch it all the way through. It was just a bad incident and it impacts on how New Yorkers feel.”

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He said that homeless people should not be living in the subway system and instead should be in a place of care. 

“And no matter where she lived, that should not have happened,” Adams said. “But we have far too many people that believe, they should be on our subway system and living on our streets, and we can’t throw our hands up and allow that to happen.”

Sebastian Zapeta, 33, a previously deported immigrant from Guatemala, was arrested hours after the horrific incident which shocked the nation. 

H⁠⁠e’s been indicted on one count of murder in the first degree, three counts of murder in the second degree and one count of arson in relation to the horrific case. 

NYPD officers escort Sebastian Zapeta from an F train in Coney Island from a precinct in Lower Manhattan on Dec. 22, 2024. (Courtesy: G.N. Miller/New York Post)

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CRITICS WARN OF ‘DANIEL PENNY EFFECT’ AFTER WOMAN BURNED ALIVE ON NYC SUBWAY CAR AS BYSTANDERS WATCHED

Surveillance video of the attack showed the suspect approaching the woman, who was sitting motionless and may have been sleeping, while aboard a stationary F train at the Coney Island-Stillwell Avenue subway station and then setting her on fire.

Police say Zapeta used a lighter to ignite the victim’s clothing, which became fully engulfed in a matter of seconds. Video from the scene shows Kawam standing while on fire, indicating she was alive when set on fire. 

The suspect then stayed on the scene and sat on a bench just outside the train car, as officers and a transit worker extinguished the flames. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene.

Sebastian Zapeta, accused of setting a woman on fire inside a New York City subway train, appears in court on Dec. 24, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Curtis Means via Pool)

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Zapeta faces life without the possibility of parole on the murder in the first-degree charge, while second-degree murder carries 25 years to life, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said earlier this week.

“This was malicious. A sleeping, vulnerable woman on our subway system,” Gonzalez added. “This act surprised many New Yorkers as they were getting ready to celebrate the holidays but now New Yorkers are waking up and understanding that on the 22nd of this year, this happened. This was intentional and we hope to prove this.”

Adams’ office tells Fox News Digital that the mayor has directed the NYPD and ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) team to explore criminal charges against Zapeta under the federal arson statute.

Zapeta was apprehended by Border Patrol and subsequently deported by the Trump administration on June 7, 2018, after he crossed illegally into Sonoita, Arizona, a week prior, ICE spokesperson Jeff Carter tells Fox News. Zapeta later re-entered the U.S. illegally on an unknown date and location, Carter said. 

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Connecticut

AGANORSA Leaf Aniversario Connecticut Tubo Ships

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AGANORSA Leaf Aniversario Connecticut Tubo Ships


The AGANORSA Leaf Aniversario Connecticut is now available in a new vitola, one that also comes in a metal tube.

It’s the second different toro for the line, though it will be difficult to confuse the two cigars. The AGANORSA Leaf Aniversario Connecticut Toro, the existing cigar, is a 6 1/4 x 52 box-pressed toro. The new AGANORSA Leaf Aniversario Connecticut Tubo is a 6 x 52 round toro. Blend-wise, the line uses an Ecuadorian Connecticut-seed wrapper over Nicaraguan tobaccos grown by AGANORSA. The line is made at the company’s factory in Nicaragua.

The AGANORSA Leaf Aniversario Connecticut Tubo has an MSRP of $19.99 and comes in boxes of 10 cigars.

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“The Aniversario Connecticut Tubo offers a perfect combination of elegance, convenience, and flavor,” said Terence Reilly, vp of sales & marketing for AGANORSA Leaf, in a press release when the cigar was announced in March. “It’s an ideal cigar for both longtime fans of the brand and smokers discovering Aganorsa for the first time.”

Charlie Minato

I am an editor and co-founder of halfwheel.com/Rueda Media, LLC. Previously, I started TheCigarFeed, one of the two predecessors blogs of halfwheel. I have written about the cigar industry since 2010, covering everything from product launches to regulation to M&A. Beyond writing, I handle a lot of the behind-the-scenes stuff from weighing cigars to coordinating the tech. Outside of work, I enjoy playing tennis, watching boxing, falling asleep to the Le Mans 24, wearing sweatshirts year-round and eating gyros. echte liebe.

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Maine

Maine should have participated in Great American Fair | Letter

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Maine should have participated in Great American Fair | Letter


I am amazed by the beauty and rich history of Maine. There is so much to be shared with all the people from away. The citizens of our special state work hard and know how to play hard in all the beautiful seasons: snow sports, camping, hiking, our immense wilderness, all of this must be shared with the world.

Think of Maine’s abundant natural resources, from blueberries, apples, potatoes, lobsters and wood products to the great shipbuilding legacy. Every Mainer, regardless of party affiliation, can agree on the things that set our state apart from others.

That’s why I was so dismayed that Maine was one of a few other states opting out of the Great American Fair, the event celebrating our nation’s 250th anniversary on the National Mall.

As the only true political peers of Gov. Janet Mills, Sens. Collins and King and Reps. Pingree and Golden need to let Mills know that this was not a good thing to do to our state, our industries and our people.

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This arbitrary decision was shameful. There are times in life when we have to rise above the fray, take the high and right road and not let negative emotions drive our actions. This was a doable project if delegated to groups with interests on the line to plan, organize and secure funds for exhibition costs. What a missed opportunity for us here in Maine.

Jane Atkinson Leifester
Turner

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Massachusetts

Swimmer rescued from Houghton’s Pond in Milton

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Swimmer rescued from Houghton’s Pond in Milton


Lifeguards rescued a swimmer from the water at Houghton’s Pond in Milton, Massachusetts on Friday.

Massachusetts State Police confirmed they were called to the pond at 1 p.m. When they arrived, they found that lifeguards had pulled a swimmer from the water. The victim, who was conscious and alert, was taken to the hospital for further treatment.

This is the same place an 18-year-old swimmer died after he was pulled from the water last month.

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