Kenneth Rickenbacker faces attempted murder and other charges after prosecutors described an attack inside a Crown Heights public housing apartment.
NEW YORK — A 44-year-old Brooklyn man was ordered held without bail after prosecutors accused him of setting a pregnant woman on fire inside a Crown Heights apartment while their 11-year-old daughter was present.
Kenneth Rickenbacker was arraigned Monday in Brooklyn Criminal Court on charges that include attempted murder, assault and arson. Prosecutors said the attack happened shortly after 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, at the Kingsborough Houses. Vanessa Edmonds, 38, suffered severe burns and was hospitalized in a medically induced coma, according to reports citing prosecutors and police.
Prosecutors said Rickenbacker and Edmonds had been arguing when he threatened Edmonds and their daughter with a knife. He then allegedly threw rubbing alcohol on Edmonds and set her on fire. The child witnessed the attack and later provided information to investigators, authorities said.
Officers responding to the apartment encountered smoke and evidence of a fire inside, according to the account prosecutors gave in court. Edmonds was taken for specialized burn treatment. Authorities said she suffered serious burns to several areas of her upper body. Her pregnancy was disclosed in court by a parole officer.
Rickenbacker left the apartment after the fire, prosecutors said. Authorities later took him into custody after he went to a police precinct in Queens to report the incident. He appeared at his arraignment with bandages on his head and hands, injuries his lawyer said were burns.
Prosecutors also described a different account Rickenbacker gave investigators. He said Edmonds had rubbing alcohol on her hand during an argument and that she caught fire from a cigarette after he pushed her away, according to court reporting. The prosecution’s allegations have not been proven in court, and the case remains pending.
The judge ordered Rickenbacker remanded and issued orders of protection barring him from contacting Edmonds and their daughter. His defense attorney reserved the right to seek bail later, according to News 12’s account of the proceeding.
The case also carries a separate parole issue. Court records show Rickenbacker pleaded guilty in Sullivan County to second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and was sentenced in 2016 to nine years in prison followed by five years of postrelease supervision. A state appellate court upheld that sentence in 2019.
Reports differ on the next court date in the new Brooklyn case. News 12 reported that Rickenbacker was due in criminal court Oct. 30 and had separate parole proceedings scheduled in November, while NY1 reported that he was expected back in court Nov. 2. He remains in custody as the case moves forward.
Author note: Last updated Oct. 27, 2026.