Ten days ago, the suspect who set fire to a sleeping female passenger in the subway station at Coney Island in Brooklyn was arrested on the afternoon of the incident. This outcome was made possible by the quick thinking and bravery of 14-year-old Taiwanese-American boy Xie Jianzhong and his companions. Their courageous actions not only earned the gratitude of the police but also set an example of valor for the Chinese community. Yesterday, City Councilor Zhuang Wenyi specially commended Xie Jianzhong. In recounting the events, he said: “As the police say, if you see something, say something.”
The incident occurred at 7:29 am on December 22. An undocumented immigrant from Guatemala, Sebastian Zapeta-Calil, in a car of the F train at the Coney Island subway station, splashed an unknown liquid on a woman who was sleeping and set her on fire, causing her to die on the spot. The police swiftly issued a wanted notice with a $10,000 reward, urging the public to provide clues to assist in the capture.
In the afternoon of the same day, Xie Jianzhong and two teammates from the basketball team were preparing to take the F train to Queens to participate in a basketball game. While they were waiting at the 9th Street and 7th Avenue subway station in Brooklyn, one teammate received a message from his mother mentioning the morning arson case. They then used a citizen app to check security information and crime warnings and searched for news on their phones, where they saw the photo of the wanted suspect.
“When I boarded the train, my friend said, ‘Hey, that’s him.’ I thought he was joking, but after two stops, I checked the photo again and looked back at the person sleeping in the car. Then I thought, wait, that’s him,” Xie Jianzhong recalled.
Initially, his friends were a bit afraid to call the police, but after discussing it, they decided that Xie Jianzhong would be responsible for contacting the authorities. Due to unstable subway signals, the call was intermittent, but the police reconnected with Xie Jianzhong, with the conversation continuing from the York Street station to the DeKalb Avenue station. Eventually, a large number of officers appeared at the 34th Street subway station, ready to intercept the suspect.
The subway broadcast informed passengers that they needed to remain in the carriage due to a train malfunction. At that time, some passengers in the car were unhappy about being stuck and eager to get out, while the suspect was sleeping with his head down, completely unaware of the impending arrest operation. When the police entered the train, they began searching the carriage section by section. Xie Jianzhong tried to gesture to guide them, but due to the crowded car, the suspect was initially not found.
“To get the police’s attention, I even jumped up and waved,” Xie Jianzhong, who is 1.81 meters tall, described. He and his teammates closely monitored the suspect, feeling a bit nervous, fearing that the suspect might cause a commotion upon waking up.
Finally, when the police rechecked through the windows, they noticed the suspect’s figure. Xie Jianzhong saw some officers pointing at the suspect, and then they cautiously opened only one door of the car, sneaked in through the crack of the door, and then dozens of police officers swarmed in, pinning down the sleeping suspect. “Imagine waking up to 40 different police officers pinning you down,” Xie Jianzhong smiled as he remembered.
The authorities later confirmed that the suspect was the wanted individual in the arson case. Currently, Zapeta-Calil has been indicted by a grand jury and faces multiple charges, including first-degree murder, second-degree murder, and arson.
Yesterday, local City Councilor Zhuang Wenyi commended Xie Jianzhong in her office, praising the 14-year-old for showing immense courage and a sense of justice. “This shows the success of family education, and we hope more parents encourage their children to pay attention to social news. When facing similar situations, understanding how to protect oneself and help maintain societal safety. This is the way to truly connect with society and do more for the community,” she said.
She further added, “We hope to see more children in the Chinese community like Xie Jianzhong. Instead of turning a blind eye and not getting involved, we should care about people and things around us, actively participate, and build a better society together.”
Xie Jianzhong’s mother, Ms. Wang, is immensely proud of her son’s actions. She recalled that it was a day after the winter solstice when the whole family was having a meal together. When her son returned home, he excitedly shared his experience on the subway and detailed the process of contacting the police.
“His actions made me proud, and our whole family is very happy,” she said. A few days later, to recognize her son’s brave actions, the family took him to buy “a bunch of things and new sneakers” as a reward.
Xie Jianzhong mentioned that he loves basketball and hopes to continue playing in college in the future. He also reflected on how this experience inspired him: “This experience made me realize that this is the essence of life – there are many things happening around us every day, which people often overlook. We may pass by a criminal every day without realizing it. When I was on the train, the ordinary passenger sitting next to the suspect had no idea what crimes he had committed that morning. I am grateful that I noticed him at the right moment.”
Finally, he said that his courage stemmed from the belief that these actions were “the right thing to do” and “the correct thing,” so they were worth doing. “I feel that I did what I should do, I did the right thing. I really have no regrets.” ◇