Michael Gabriel Hernandez
10 September 2025•Update: 10 September 2025
WASHINGTON
The White House said Tuesday that Charlotte, North Carolina's public transit light rail system is "more dangerous" than Ukraine after a Ukrainian refugee was brutally murdered there.
"This beautiful, innocent, 23-year-old young woman was a Ukrainian refugee who had recently fled her country for a chance at a safer life and a promising new beginning here in the United States of America, but tragically, a public transportation system in a major American city was more dangerous than the active war zone that she left," said spokesperson Karoline Leavitt.
"The president and the entire White House are praying for her family and friends during this unimaginably difficult time. But while we extend our thoughts and prayers, we must also seek justice for this crime and call attention to this heinous incident," she added.
Surveillance video footage of the Aug. 22 fatal stabbing of Iryna Zarutska was released Monday as the case gained national attention. It appears to depict Zarutska getting on a train before taking a seat in front of another passenger. After some time elapses, the other individual opens a knife, stands up and stabs Zarutska.
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department identified the suspect as Decarlos Brown Jr., 34. He is facing state charges of first degree murder.
Russ Ferguson, the US attorney for the western district of North Carolina, announced federal charges against Brown on Tuesday, including committing an act of violence on a mass transportation system.
"It is a law that is there, because acts like this affect the American way. It affects our daily life," he told reporters at a news conference.
Attorney General Pam Bondi said federal prosecutors would seek the "maximum sentence" for Brown.
"I have directed my attorneys to federally prosecute DeCarlos Brown Jr., a repeat violent offender with a history of violent crime, for murder," she said on American social media platform X. "We will seek the maximum penalty for this unforgivable crime, and he will never again see the light of day as a free man."
