Man arrested for allegedly setting stranger’s shirt on fire in US

Nile Taylor, 49, is facing eight charges, including assault, arson and reckless endangerment, after he threw an unknown flammable substance which ignited the 23-year-old victim’s shirt, according to the New York Police Department. The suspect was unknown to the victim, police said.

The incident happened about 2.45pm Saturday local time (4.45am Sunday AEST) as a train was pulling up to Manhattan’s Houston Street station. The suspect fled the scene but was later taken into custody nearby, the NYPD said.

The male victim suffered a burn to his upper torso and remains in a stable condition after being transported to a hospital, police said.

On Sunday, police said a 22-year-old woman was also injured, but the state of her condition and injuries were unclear.

Taylor is a suspect in what the NYPD said was a similar incident earlier this year.

Police said Taylor was separately arrested Sunday in connection with the February 5 evening incident, for which he is accused of throwing a “lit container of flammable liquid” at a group of people standing on a train platform at the West 28th Street station in Manhattan, the NYPD said in March.

Taylor is facing charges of attempted assault, reckless endangerment and arson over that incident, the NYPD said. No injuries were reported.

The NYPD did not have any information on the suspect’s possible motive in either incident.

Police said it is not yet known when the suspect will be in court, and it is not clear whether he has retained an attorney. CNN has attempted to identify an attorney for Taylor.