Graphic footage released of career criminal stabbing Ukrainian refugee to death on NC train

A haunting new video allegedly shows a homeless ex-convict fatally stabbing a Ukrainian woman who was riding on the Charlotte, North Carolina, light rail. The killing occurred in August after the woman fled her home country to escape the war.

Decarlos Brown Jr, 34, was arrested for first-degree murder in the stabbing. Footage of the stabbing was made public on Friday after it was obtained by WBTV. Brown was seated on the rail and appeared to be agitated before Iryna Zarutska, 23, boarded the light rail in the seat in front of him. After around a minute and 30 seconds into the footage, Brown takes out a pocketknife, unfolds it, and stabs Zarutska in the neck three times.

He then walked away, and Zarutska fell to the floor. As he walked away from the stabbing, blood was seen dripping from his hand and knife as he walked to another part of the light rail, other passengers avoiding him as he went.

Brown removed his sweatshirt and placed it in his hand after walking to the other side of the railcar. Another passenger was seen in the video trying to help Zarutska after the stabbing attack. Brown exited the car around 30 seconds after the attack took place. After the attack, he was shortly arrested and also treated at the hospital for a laceration on his hand. Police do not believe that he knew Zarutska.

Brown is homeless and has a lengthy criminal record. He was arrested in January 2025 after he called 911 and claimed that someone had given him a material that was in control of how he walked, talked, and ate. According to the New York Post, he has multiple arrests going back to 2011. His record also includes robbery with a dangerous weapon, larceny, and communicating threats.