Federal charges were issued Wednesday against a man accused of setting a woman on fire on a CTA Blue Line train in downtown Chicago this week.
Lawrence Reed, 50, was charged in a criminal complaint with committing a terrorist attack or other violence on the mass transit system -- a federal offense rather than a state offense.
In an affidavit, U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives Special Agent Adam Fitzgerald -- who works in the Crime Gun Intelligence Center with Chicago police and other law enforcement agencies -- said investigators found the woman lying on her back with severe burns to her face and body.
Investigators also found a partially melted bottle, a lighter, the ignitable liquid, and the burned remains of the woman's clothing, the affidavit said.
Chicago police investigators obtained surveillance footage from Chicago Transit Authority Blue Line train car No. 3236 and found the victim sitting on a seat in the middle of the train car. Reed was sitting in the back of the same train car.
The surveillance footage showed Reed standing up with a bottle in hand, walking up to the victim -- who was seated with her back toward him -- and pouring a liquid from the bottle all over her body. Reed then tried to ignite the liquid, the affidavit said.
At first, the victim fought off Reed and ran to the front of the train, the affidavit said. But Reed chased her and dropped the bottle on the floor, the affidavit said.
The victim then ran to the rear of the train car, the affidavit said.
Reed then picked up the bottle, which was now on fire, the affidavit said. He approached the victim, lit her on fire using the bottle, and stood and watched as he body was engulfed in flames, the affidavit said.
The woman, who was almost fully engulfed in flames, tried to put out the fire by rolling on the floor of the train car, the affidavit said. When the train stopped at Clark/Lake, the woman was still on fire.
The woman exited the train at the station and collapsed on the platform.
"She was running off the train towards the middle of it, completely engulfed in fire," said witness Christopher Flores.
On the platform, bystanders attended to the woman, the affidavit said.
"I went over to see what's going on," said Flores. "She's on the ground crying. Burnt to a crisp."
Meanwhile, Reed also got off the train and left the scene.
Investigators also found surveillance video from a Citgo gas station at 3537 W. Harrison St. about 20 minutes before the attack. In this video, Reed is seen wearing the same clothing as he was wearing when he allegedly attacked Reed, the affidavit said.
He is seen making a payment to a cashier and filling a small container with gasoline, prosecutors said. He is then seen getting on the Blue Line at the Kedzie-Homan station along the Eisenhower Expressway, a short distance away from the gas station, the affidavit said.
At 11:29 a.m. Tuesday, Reed was arrested at 140 W. Washington St. downtown, the affidavit said. He was still wearing the same clothing, and he had fire-related injuries to his right hand, the affidavit said.
While the attack raises safety concerns, some riders said the incident speaks to the need to address troubled people walking the streets and riding the CTA.
CBS News Chicago first started contacting the CTA on Monday night, and an interview request was declined on Tuesday.
Instead, officials issued a statement Tuesday afternoon: "The CTA has been working closely with the Chicago Police Department (CPD) and the Public Transportation Unit detectives embedded at the Strategic Decision Support Center (SDSC) dedicated to CTA, to support their investigation and ensure the offender is quickly apprehended."