Man sat in front of victim for 4 minutes before randomly stabbing her on light rail: Affidavit

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — The man accused of killing a 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee Friday night in a light rail car in South End has been booked into the Mecklenburg County Jail, according to an affidavit obtained Thursday.

Records show Decarlos Brown is charged with first-degree murder and is being held without bond.

Brown is accused of killing Iryna Zarutska, a 23-year-old woman who left Ukraine for the Charlotte area three years ago to escape her country’s war with Russia. 

According to the report, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department was dispatched to the East/West Station on Camden Road shortly before 10 p.m. Friday, Aug. 22.

Officers found Zarutska in the back of one of the Lynx Blue Line cars. She had been stabbed in the throat, according to the affidavit. She was pronounced dead at 10:05 p.m.

Brown was reportedly found shortly after the stabbing, arrested, and taken to the hospital for a laceration on the outside of his hand.

Police also discovered a folding knife on the train platform.

Video retrieved from inside the train showed Zarutska getting on the train car and sitting in a seat directly in front of Brown.

The train reportedly traveled for approximately four and a half minutes before Brown allegedly “pulls a knife from his pocket, unfolds the knife, pauses, then stands up, and strikes at the victim three times.”

Zarutska was stabbed in the middle of the throat at least one of those times.

The affidavit says Brown walked away as Zarutska began bleeding out. She became unresponsive shortly after being stabbed.

It is believed Brown and Zarutska did not know each other. There “appeared to be no interaction” between the two on the light rail prior to the stabbing, the affidavit said.

Officials have not given a motive for Brown’s alleged attack on Zarutska.

“Untreated mental illness in anyone without access can often increase vulnerability. So, people do end up being a revolving door when it comes to them having trouble with the law or with crimes,” said counseling psychologist Dr. Charryse Johnson.

Queen City News spoke with counseling psychologist Dr. Johnson about these kinds of cases. But not Brown’s specifically.

Johnson says there is no direct link between homelessness and mental health. The doctor adds that there are CMPD officers trained to support people who are struggling with some type of mental health episode.

“The thing that we can do is say, hey, I’m here and I’m observing something. I suspect that this might be an individual who has a mental health challenge, so please keep that in mind, and CMPD is qualified, and there’s also crisis agencies on the ground that can come to the scene,” Johnson said.

Michael Tabman was a police officer for almost four years before becoming an FBI special agent. Tabman says he’s had numerous interactions with homeless people, and some experiencing mental episodes.

“The homeless person or the person with mental illness, their attempt was not to start a crime, commit a crime, start a problem. It was just self-preservation. But unfortunately, this is what it rolls into. So we have to arrest them or at the time with cause we would bring them into a mental health facility,” Tabman said

Tabman also says it’s best to call the police and give them details of the mental health episode beforehand. It could save someone’s life.

“It’s sad that a mental illness has led to this potential confrontation, but the officers do have a right and obligation to protect themselves and get home at night, mental illness or not. So, you have to be honest with them. You have to let them know what’s going on,” Tabman said. 

Brown is scheduled to make his initial court appearance in the stabbing case Friday.