STORY UPDATED: check for updates below.

Vic Not Named

Has the New York Police Department released the identity of a woman set on fire on a New York subway car as "Amelia Carter" as of December 24, 2024? No, that's not true: An agency spokesperson told Lead Stories that as of this writing, the "identification of the victim is pending." Police have, however, charged a suspect named "Sebastian Zapeta".

A version of the claim was shared (archived here) to X on December 23, 2024, with a caption that read:

Say her name Amelia Carter 😢

This is the girl whose life was ended as she was set on FIRE in a NYC subway by an ILLEGAL Sebastian Zapeta.

Am I the only one feeling that Joe Biden, Kamala Harris & every single Democrat should be held RESPONSIBLE‼️

Justice for Amelia Carter 🙏

This is how the post appeared on X at the time of writing:

(Source: X screenshot taken Tue Dec 24 08:35:00 2024 UTC)

In an email to Lead Stories received on December 24, 2024, an NYPD spokesperson wrote:

The identification of the victim is pending at this time.

Authorities reported that the suspect walked up to a seated victim and lit her on fire with a lighter, causing her to become "fully engulfed in a matter of seconds." The woman was pronounced dead on the scene.

NYPD also sent Lead Stories documents that identified the suspect as 33-year-old Sebastian Zapeta, who was arrested on December 23, 2024, on two murder charges and an arson charge.

A "Justice For Amelia (AMELIA)" (archived here) cryptocurrency coin was launched on the website pump.fun on December 22, 2024. It featured the same image shared in social media posts with the following message:

New York City, NY - The family of 29-year-old Amelia Carter has announced her tragic passing after she was fatally set on fire aboard an F Train in Coney Island. In an emotional statement, her grieving family expressed their heartbreak and called for justice. 'We are devastated and heartbroken beyond words. Amelia was a beautiful soul who brought light into the lives of everyone who knew her. She didn't deserve this senseless, cruel act,' the family said. 'We demand justice for Amelia. No one should ever have to endure such pain, and no family should have to experience this kind of loss.'

This statement did not provide information to prove that the family issued it, such as where or when it was given. No information about the family was given either.

But because police have not identified the victim as of this writing, it is not possible that their family would have been notified, according to a press conference (archived here) held by Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch on December 22, 2024.

The internet pop culture website Know Your Meme (archived here) writes that pump.fun is "a cryptocurrency generator and decentralized exchange on the Solana (SOL) blockchain." Pump.fun allows users to launch a token for free, like launching a "spin-off of Bitcoin." Users can name the token whatever they want. The website was registered on September 19, 2023, to an unnamed registrant located in Tempe, Arizona, according to online domain data.

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At the time of this writing, Newsweek had also investigated this claim.

Other Lead Stories debunks involving cryptocurrency can be read here.