A Brooklyn landlord who set fire to a Cypress Hills home while a family slept is headed to prison for a decade, prosecutors said. The September 2023 blaze trapped eight people, including six young children, and triggered a desperate rooftop rescue in which adults dropped the kids into the arms of neighbors below. The defendant, 68-year-old Rafiqul Islam, admitted to second-degree arson and received a 10-year prison sentence.
Guilty plea, 10-year term and DA’s response
According to News12 Brooklyn, Islam pleaded guilty to second-degree arson on April 28, 2026, and was sentenced on June 10 to 10 years behind bars. Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez called the crime a “life-threatening escalation of a rent dispute” and said the sentence “ensures the defendant is held accountable for the trauma he inflicted on this family and his community.”
How investigators say they tied him to the fire
A press release from the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office states that FDNY Fire Marshals reviewed surveillance footage that investigators say linked Islam to a fire set in the building’s interior stairwell. He was arrested on October 25, 2023.
The same release notes that the 1920 building at 212 Forbell St. had just one entrance and no fire escape, a setup that left residents with few options once flames and smoke began to spread. Investigators also documented prior complaints and alleged threats from the landlord toward the tenants.
Rooftop drops, kids in neighbors’ arms
Neighbors recalled chaos and split-second decisions as the second-floor family, with children ages 1 to 8, scrambled onto the roof to escape the smoke. Two adults then dropped the children about 20 feet into the arms of neighbors waiting below.
As reported by amNY, roughly 55 firefighters battled the blaze, and paramedics took family members to Brookdale Hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation and minor injuries.
From attempted murder counts to an arson plea
Islam was initially indicted on a 59-count complaint that included attempted murder and related arson charges, according to the District Attorney’s 2023 statement. He ultimately pleaded guilty to second-degree arson in April 2026.
Prosecutors said the fire capped months of tension over unpaid rent and that their case leaned on the surveillance footage and witness accounts to secure the plea and the 10-year sentence.
Aftermath for tenants and the neighborhood
Neighbors and local outlets said the case underscored the real danger tenants can face when landlord-tenant disputes spiral into violence, and noted that it could still spark civil suits or other follow-up actions.
As News12 reports, prosecutors described the outcome as a measure of accountability for the family and for the Cypress Hills community that watched the rescue unfold in real time.
