By Lauren Mascarenhas, Jeff Winter and Gloria Pazmino, CNN

(CNN) — Sebastian Zapeta-Calil repeatedly told detectives he had no memory of an attack that killed a woman who was set ablaze on the New York City subway train he was riding the morning of December 22, according to court documents.

Then, investigators played surveillance video that allegedly caught him igniting the flames.

“Oh, damn, that’s me,” Zapeta-Calil said during questioning with police that was transcribed and translated, according to the documents.

“I am very sorry. I didn’t mean to. But I really don’t know. I don’t know what happened, but I’m very sorry for that woman,” Zapeta-Calil told police, according to the court documents.

Zapeta-Calil, 33, an undocumented migrant from Guatemala, pleaded not guilty to murder charges Tuesday in the death of Debrina Kawam, 57, and was ordered held without bail.

He was previously indicted on charges of first- and second-degree murder and arson in the killing. CNN has reached out to his lawyer for comment.

Police say Zapeta-Calil calmly walked up to Kawam as she was sleeping on an F train approaching the Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue subway station in Brooklyn and used a lighter to ignite her clothes and the blanket that was wrapped around her.

Kawam, who authorities say resided in New Jersey after a stint in New York’s shelter system, died by homicide caused by thermal injuries and smoke inhalation, according to a complaint filed in Brooklyn Criminal Court.

The attack has stoked fears among New Yorkers about safety on subways and in the city at large, after several high-profile, violent incidents in recent years.

“It is difficult to fathom what could lead someone to commit the atrocious and horrific murder with which this defendant is charged,” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said Tuesday in a statement. “My office swiftly obtained an indictment, and we are determined to exact the most severe punishment for this heinous and inhumane act. Ms. Kawam and her loved ones deserve a measure of justice and New Yorkers deserve to feel safe in the subways.”

After Zapeta-Calil was indicted, Gonzalez noted the defendant faces the possibility of life in prison without parole if convicted of first-degree murder.

During an initial court appearance in December, Zapeta-Calil claimed to have no knowledge of the incident, noting his alcohol consumption.

During questioning with police, Zapeta-Calil said he sometimes drinks and loses his memory of events, waking up at home or on a train with no memory of how he got there, according to court documents.

He added that he sometimes sleeps on the subway. O?n the morning of the incident, he said he woke up on the F train but did not remember how he arrived there, the documents show.

Surveillance video of the incident – which appeared to show Zapeta-Calil sitting on a bench across from the subway car and watching Kawan burn – played a critical role in helping police find a suspect.

Hours after the attack, authorities released images from surveillance and police body cameras, and three high school students recognized the suspect and reported it to police, who found Zapeta-Calil on a subway train in Midtown Manhattan about eight hours later. He was found with a lighter in his pocket, New York City Police Department Chief of Transit Joseph Gulotta said.

Zapeta-Calil was deported in 2018 and subsequently returned to the US illegally, according to federal immigration authorities. His most recent address in an arrest report was listed as a homeless shelter in Brooklyn for men struggling with substance abuse, the NYPD said.

Zapeta-Calil told police that he’s lived in the US for five years and has been working as a laborer in Queens, according to court documents.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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CNN’s Mark Morales, Hanna Park, Gloria Pazmino, Sabrina Shulman and Eric Levenson contributed to this report.