A 19-year-old from Harlem, New York, has been sentenced to 5.5 years in prison for setting a homeless man on fire in a subway car last December. The victim, a 56-year-old man sleeping on the train, suffered severe burns and permanent scarring and disfigurement.
According to prosecutors, Hiram Carrero boarded a train at Penn Station in the early hours of the night, lit a piece of paper, and used it to ignite the sleeping man’s clothing. He then got off the train, leaving the victim trapped inside as the train kept moving. The man managed to get out while engulfed in flames at Times Square station.
Emergency crews extinguished the fire and rushed the victim to the hospital in critical condition. In March, Carrero admitted that he intentionally set the paper on fire, which led to the attack. In addition to the prison term, he received three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay restitution.
Federal prosecutor Jay Clayton called the attack “a shocking, terrible and inconceivable offense” and said rescue teams prevented a greater disaster by saving the victim’s life. Carrero’s lawyer sought leniency, saying he was abandoned by his parents shortly after birth and felt “deep shame and remorse” for what he did.
