The homeless man accused of stabbing Iryna Zarutska, who was a refugee from Ukraine, aboard a North Carolina light rail train, has now been deemed mentally incapable to stand trial.
Local media outlets shared more about how a motion was filed on April 7 by attorneys for the suspect, Decarlos Brown Jr., and that's when a report from the psychiatric facility was brought to light. This found Brown incapable of proceeding to trial.
The case did not proceed until a judge decided that Brown's mental capacity was restored, as shared by local media outlets. Brown ended up getting arrested on August 22, 2025, after stabbing Zarutska to death while riding the Lynx Blue Line train in Charlotte.
That night, the victim, who was just 23, was seen on video sitting in an aisle seat directly in front of a man who pulls a knife out of his pocket, unfolds that knife, pauses, then stands up, and strikes the victim three times as per an affidavit attained by ABC News.
The affidavit shared more about how blood was seen dripping on the floor as the defendant walked away from the victim. This victim went unresponsive shortly after this attack.