Man charged with attempted murder for setting homeless person on fire at Penn Station

A 47-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder for allegedly setting fire to a homeless man sleeping at Penn Station on Monday.

A second suspect was arrested and released.

The office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg confirmed the arrests of Damon Johnson, 47, and Lyla Najjar, 33, in connection with the incident, but said the office has "declined to prosecute" Najjar "pending further investigation."

In an initial account, the NYPD said three people had set fire to the victim, identified only as a 37-year-old homeless man, at about 8:40 p.m. Monday by lighting his clothes on fire.

A third suspect has not been publicly identified.

Paramedics transported the victim to the NewYork-Presbyterian Weill Cornell burn center, where police said he was in stable condition. The trio of suspects fled the scene, police said.

The victim suffered second-degree burns to his back and left arm, according to an Amtrak police officer's account provided to Newsday by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office.

"I observed the Complainant seated behind a column with his legs and feet sticking out and visible in the video," the account reads, referring to the victim. "I observed a male individual wearing a brown jacket, white hat, jeans, and black and silver sneakers crouch down and lean over the Complainant extending an arm towards his back for a period of time."

The account then describes how after some time, the victim got up, fully visible on video, and ran while "his jacket is on fire."

Johnson was arrested the next morning, according to the district attorney's office. He has "numerous prior convictions and appears to be a mandatory persistent violent felon," a spokeswoman for the office wrote to Newsday.

Court records show Johnson is charged with attempted murder in the first degree, attempted assault in the first degree and assault in the second degree. 

The records show Johnson entered a plea of not guilty to all three counts and was remanded, due back in court Friday. He is represented by a Legal Aid attorney. That attorney did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday.

By John Valenti

john.valenti@newsday.com

John Valenti, a Newsday reporter since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press, Society of the Silurians and National Headliner Awards for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing. He is the author of “Swee'pea,” about New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. His debut crime novel, “For Nothing Is Hidden,” rooted in 1950s Long Island, was released in October 2025.