Man doused in gasoline, set on fire

Darrel Brackett is in critical condition at Jackson Memorial Hospital

MIAMI – A 44-year-old man remained in critical condition Wednesday after police say he was doused in gasoline and set on fire late Christmas night.

Police say Darrell Brackett's car ran out of gas at NW 47th Street and 27th Avenue about 11:30 p.m. Tuesday, so he walked to a nearby U-Gas station and filled up a container.

On his way back to his car, three men approached Brackett, doused him in gasoline, and set him on fire while his girlfriend watched from the car.

"It's heart breaking," said Bridgett Brackett, Darrel Brackett's mother. "My son is in very critical condition right now. It's touch and go."

Brackett said a woman passing by came to her son's aid.

"She helped to put the fire out and he told her the only thing I did was asked a question. They didn't have to do this to me," said Brackett. "He's burned over 70 percent of his body. Seventy-percent of his body."

"We're praying really hard," said Brackett's cousin. "We heard his last words were 'Why would somebody do this to me?'"

The manager at the U-Gas station said surveillance cameras there weren't working at the time.

"My thing is this is a senseless crime. How could you take gasoline and throw it on somebody and set them on fire?" said Brackett. "The only thing I'm asking someone out in the community is, if you saw anything, if you know anything, just have a little heart and speak up. This is my family member. It could have been your family member. These kind of crimes have to stop."