The suspect accused of fatally stabbing a 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee on board a Charlotte Area Transit System train last month has been charged with a federal crime.
Decarlos Brown Jr. was charged with one count of committing an act causing death on a mass transportation system in connection with the Aug. 22 stabbing, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
The victim, who was identified by police as Iryna Zarutska, had recently come to the U.S. from Ukraine to escape the war with Russia, according to her family.
“Iryna Zarutska was a young woman living the American dream — her horrific murder is a direct result of failed soft-on-crime policies that put criminals before innocent people,” U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement. “I have directed my attorneys to federally prosecute DeCarlos Brown Jr., a repeat violent offender with a history of violent crime, for murder. We will seek the maximum penalty for this unforgivable act of violence — he will never again see the light of day as a free man.”
Brown has a long criminal history spanning over a decade, including felony breaking and entering and robbery with a dangerous weapon, for which he served a five-year prison sentence, according to court records.
According to a complaint filed by the FBI in U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, Zarutska got on the LYNX blue line train at around 9:46 p.m. local time and sat down in front of Brown.
“At approximately 21:50 hours, Brown pulled a knife from his pocket and unfolded the knife before striking the victim three times from behind,” the complaint stated. “Following the attack, suspected blood can be seen dripping onto the floor as Brown walked away from the victim.”
Officers from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department responded to the 1800 block of Camden Road following a call reporting an assault with a deadly weapon, per the complaint. The victim was found in the rear car of the train near “a large amount of blood, with a single stab wound in the middle of her neck.”
Investigators found a pocketknife and a red shirt soaked in “suspected blood” at the scene, according to the complaint. Brown was arrested on the outbound LYNX blue line platform at the same station the incident was reported. He was initially charged with first degree murder.
“The brutal attack on Iryna Zarutska on the Charlotte Light Rail was a disgraceful act that should never happen in America,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in a statement. “The FBI jumped to assist in this investigation immediately to ensure justice is served and the perpetrator is never released from jail to kill again.”
Brown is in state custody as of Tuesday, according to U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina Russ Ferguson, who spoke in a news briefing on Tuesday afternoon.
If convicted, Brown will face a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole or death, according to the justice department.
The investigation is ongoing.
