A 23-year-old Ukrainian woman who recently fled to the United States to escape the war in her homeland was fatally stabbed on 22 August night at a Charlotte light rail station.

Iryna Zarutska was found dead at 9:55 p.m. at the South End light rail station in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Police arrested 34-year-old Decarlos Brown Jr. at the scene and charged him with first-degree murder. Brown was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries sustained during the incident. 

Court records show Brown has been arrested multiple times since 2011 on charges including felony larceny, robbery with a dangerous weapon, and communicating threats. Most of these charges were subsequently dropped, according to The Charlotte Observer.

The pattern continued this year. In January, Brown called 911 after a welfare check, telling officers he believed someone had placed a “man-made” material inside his body that controlled when he ate, walked, and talked. When officers explained this was a medical issue beyond their scope, Brown became upset and called 911 again. He was arrested after hanging up.

His public defender has now filed a motion questioning his capacity to proceed with the murder case. Brown is reportedly homeless.

The killing has shaken confidence in Charlotte’s transit system. Council member Edwin Peacock put it bluntly: “The trust and confidence that we have right now, and particularly between South End and Uptown, it’s very fragile right now.”

Peacock knows what comes next. “I know from my experience of living in Washington, D.C., and having lots of friends in Atlanta that the moment where the transit system starts to become something where it’s not considered to be safe is the moment in which you begin to lose riders, to lose momentum.”

Police have not disclosed what led to the stabbing. The investigation remains active and ongoing, with authorities asking anyone with information to contact the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.