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New York Governor Kathy Hochul faced intense criticism after touting the safety of the city’s subway system in a social media post, just hours after a horrific incident where a woman was set on fire and burned to death aboard a train.
Hochul, who has been vocal about her efforts to improve subway safety, shared a post on X (formerly Twitter) claiming that crime in the city’s subway system had decreased following her deployment of National Guard troops in March. The governor highlighted the addition of security cameras on subway cars and the presence of 750 National Guard members stationed in the subway system since the beginning of the year as part of efforts to curb crime.
“In March, I took action to make our subways safer for the millions of people who take the trains each day,” Hochul wrote. “Since deploying the @NationalGuardNY to support @NYPDnews and @MTA safety efforts and adding cameras to all subway cars, crime is going down, and ridership is going up.”
However, the timing of the tweet raised eyebrows, as it came just hours after a brutal attack on the F train at the Stillwell Avenue station in Brooklyn, where a woman was set on fire by a man identified as 33-year-old Sebastian Zapeta.
Hochul’s post was even hit by a community note on X that spoke for the victim whose life ended tragically in the allegedly intentional attack.
Police sources stated that the victim, a woman believed to have been sleeping at the time, was engulfed in flames after Zapeta threw a lit match on her. The woman, whose identity has not been confirmed, was later pronounced dead at the scene.
The viral spread of a video showing the incident left many shocked, with several social media users quick to point out the stark contrast between Hochul’s tweet and the brutal reality of subway violence.
Some even responded to her post with graphic footage of the attack, highlighting the lack of sensitivity in her messaging. The tweet was briefly flagged with a community note on X, referencing the tragic incident.
Former Governor Andrew Cuomo’s secretary, Melissa DeRosa, joined the growing chorus of critics, condemning Hochul for her tone-deaf response. “2 people were murdered in the subway today,” DeRosa wrote. “The governor of the state of NY is a tourist who can’t even bother to read a newspaper while she’s in town.”
The backlash didn’t stop there. The advocacy group AntiSemitism also weighed in, suggesting that Hochul’s communications team needed a revamp. “She needs a new social media team,” they wrote in response to the tweet.
Lori Mills, the vice chair of the Ventura County Republican Party, was also blunt in her reply, saying, “You must have missed today’s news.”
Meanwhile, sources have identified the suspect in the attack as Sebastian Zapeta, a 33-year-old man who allegedly entered the US from Guatemala about a year ago. The details of his immigration status remain unclear, and authorities have yet to confirm whether he entered the country legally. Fox News Digital has reached out to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for more information regarding Zapeta’s status.
The incident, which adds to the growing concerns over subway safety, has reignited debates on how effective the current measures are and whether Hochul’s strategies are truly addressing the city’s violent crime problem.
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