DOWNTOWN — A 50-year-old man has been charged with committing a terrorist attack against a mass transportation system after he set a woman on fire on the Blue Line earlier this week, federal prosecutors said.
Lawrence Reed, of Chicago, was arrested Tuesday after security footage showed him approaching a 26-year-old woman on the train, pouring liquid on her body and later setting her on fire, according to a complaint filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The incident happened around 9:30 p.m. Monday while Reed and the woman were riding the Blue Line through Downtown. According to court records, Reed approached the victim, who was seated with her back toward him, took the cap off a bottle of liquid and poured it over the victim’s head and body.
Security camera footage shows the attack on a Blue Line train Monday, Nov. 17, 2025. Credit: Provided
The woman ran toward the front of the train car, but Reed caught up with her. He then ignited the bottle, which fell out of his hand onto the floor, the complaint states. Reed picked up the bottle, which remained on fire, approached the woman and used it to set her ablaze, according to the complaint.
The woman, engulfed in flames, was able to get off the train when it stopped at Clark and Lake. She remains hospitalized in critical condition with severe injuries and burns to her body and face, according to the complaint.
Reed was seen exiting the train and leaving the station at the same time, according to the complaint.
Surveillance footage from a Citgo gas station near the Kedzie-Homan Blue Line station shows Reed filling a clear bottle with gasoline about 20 minutes before the incident, according to the complaint.
Reed was arrested by Chicago police Tuesday and turned over to federal authorities Wednesday. The charge — committing a terrorist attack against a mass transportation system — is punishable by a maximum sentence of life in federal prison.
“This horrific attack was not just a barbaric assault on an innocent woman riding a train, but an act of terrorism that strikes at the core of our American way of life,” U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros said in a statement announcing the new federal charges Wednesday.
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