A New York City man accused of kidnapping, murder, and other charges was arraigned in court on Wednesday, March 8, for allegedly tying his ex-girlfriend to a chair in her apartment and then setting her on fire, killing her.
The horrifying murder took place inside an apartment in Cypress Hills, Brooklyn, because the man believed the woman had stolen and sold his comic books.
Lashawn Duffie was charged with first and second-degree murder, kidnapping in the first degree and robbery in the second and third-degree, according to Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez.
Duffie was arrested on January 24 and remanded without bail. His next court appearance is on May 3.
The DA’s office charged Duffie in connection to the murder that was committed on November 11, 2022 and shocked the entire city.
According to the police, Duffie confronted his ex-girlfriend, 40-year-old Surgery Ramirez, about getting into his apartment, stealing his beloved comic books, and then selling them.
The District Attorney said that Duffie went to a bodega near the apartment building, where surveillance cameras captured him buying lighter fluid, twine, and a lighter. He allegedly used the cash he had stolen earlier from Ramirez’s friend to pay for the goods.
Investigators discovered that Duffie entered Ramirez’s apartment at around 3:50 am and carried out the assault on the helpless woman. He tied her to a chair, poured lighter fluid all over her body, lit her on fire, and then left her to burn to death.
Surveillance cameras caught Duffie after the heinous attack getting rid of a lighter, his clothes, and Ramirez’s identification documents into a dumpster, according to the DA’s office.
Firefighters quickly responded to the scene but found Ramirez had already died. They took her body to the medical examiner’s office, who determined that her cause of death was severe burns and homicidal violence.
If convicted of the crimes, Duffie will be facing life in prison.
