The NYPD and MTA Police are conducting a joint investigation after a senior man was found on fire and severely burned inside Penn Station on Friday night.
According to police sources, commuters flagged down MTA Police officers inside the Midtown transit hub at around 8:10 p.m. on Dec. 27, frantically reporting that a man was on fire.
Seconds later, the officers discovered a 67-year-old man in a passageway leading to the 1, 2, and 3 trains covered in flames. After extinguishing the fire, the man was found to have severe burns covering both his legs and portions of his body.
EMS rushed the victim to Weill Cornell Hospital in stable condition.
Cops are investigating how exactly the senior became engulfed in flames, reviewing surveillance footage and speaking with eyewitnesses. However, they did not have a definitive answer at the time of publication.
This comes less than a week after a woman was burned to death aboard an F train in Coney Island on Sunday — a barbaric crime that shocked many New Yorkers.
Sebastian Zapeta-Calil, a 33-year-old Guatemalan migrant who had been previously deported in 2018, was arrested for the murder. Prosecutors allege Zapeta-Calil used a lighter to set the woman’s clothing ablaze before he fanned the flames around her with a shirt. The suspect claimed he had no memory of the incident.
Anyone with information regarding Friday’s incident can call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (for Spanish, dial 888-57-PISTA). You can also submit tips online at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org or on X (formerly Twitter) @NYPDTips. All calls and messages are kept confidential.
