A 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee seeking safety and a new start in the United States was fatally stabbed at a train station in Charlotte, North Carolina, last week, authorities and family members confirmed.
Iryna Zarutska was found with multiple stab wounds at the East/West Boulevard light rail station in the South End neighborhood just before 10 p.m. on Friday, according to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Zarutska had recently arrived in the U.S. after fleeing the ongoing war in Ukraine. A fundraising page created by her family described her death as a devastating and premature loss. “Tragically, her life was cut short far too soon… This is an irreparable loss for her family,” the GoFundMe page read.
Images from local news outlet WSOC-TV showed police at the scene, with yellow tape cordoning off the station platform. Authorities have not yet clarified whether the attack occurred on the train, the platform, or in the surrounding area.
The suspect, identified as 34-year-old Decarlos Brown Jr., was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries on the night of the incident. He has since been arrested and charged with first-degree murder.
Brown, who is homeless, has a lengthy criminal history dating back to 2011, including charges of felony larceny, armed robbery, and making threats, according to court documents. He previously served five years in prison for an armed robbery conviction.
According to reports from the Charlotte Observer, Brown also has pending charges from an incident earlier this year involving misuse of the 911 system. During a police welfare check in January, he reportedly expressed delusional beliefs, claiming someone had implanted a material in his body that controlled his movements. Officers advised him it was a medical issue and were unable to assist further. Brown was arrested after repeatedly calling 911 following the encounter.
Police have not yet determined what led up to the fatal stabbing, and the investigation is ongoing.