Man Gets 15 Years for Homeless Fire Attack

BROOKLYN, N.Y. (CN) - A man who videotaped a homeless man getting set on fire was sentenced to 15 years in prison, the Brooklyn District Attorney announced Friday.

Lorenzo Fonerin, 23, was convicted of first degree assault for his part in the attack.

Prosecutors say that just past midnight on Sept. 23, 2012, Fonerin and Suliman Ahmed targeted Tasheen Hand, who was sleeping in the doorway of a deli they were working in. Fonerin's cellphone video shows Ahmed dousing Hand with lighter fluid. Another cellphone video shows Ahmed allegedly lighting a book of matches and dropping it on Hand, setting him on fire.

"This defendant took part in a horrific and inhumane crime against a defenseless victim," Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson said in a statement. "With his abhorrent behavior, he forfeited the right to be out in the streets of Brooklyn and today's sentence ensures that outcome."

Ahmed's case is still pending.

Hand suffered third-degree burns to his back and buttocks, was put in a medically-induced coma and had to spend over two months in the hospital.

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