Many people have been talking about the killing of Iryna Zarutska. She was a 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee who was stabbed on August 22, 2025. The killing took place on a LYNX Blue Line light-rail train in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Iryna had boarded the train late, she then sat down and bowed her head on her phone like nearby passengers.. She sat in front of a man who, just four minutes later, dug into his clothes and pulled out a knife.
He then stood up and swung the knife, fatally stabbing Iryna in the neck. She then clutched her face and throat in shock. She fell to the ground not too long after, as she then tragically passed away.
This attack was politicized specifically by commentators in the U.S. because it involved both white and black citizens. United States President, Donald Trump, stated that Zarutska’s “blood is on the hands of the Democrats who refuse to put bad people in jail”. By saying this, he was referring to the suspected killer, who was a Black man named Decarlos Brown Jr, whom Trump called a “career criminal”.
Decarlos had a history of mental illness, along with previous arrests, and had more than five years in jail for robbery. He is now in jail for first-degree murder, where he is eligible for the death penalty.
Trump-appointed Attorney General Pam Bondi said that she would seek the death penalty for Decarlos and stated that he would “never see the light of day as a free man”.
Trump also threatens to deploy the National Guard to Chicago. “North Carolina, and every State, needs law and order, and only Republicans will deliver it!” Trump stated on Truth Social, which is a platform without political censorship.
Many Ukrainians are horrified by the situation, considering Iryna was a Ukrainian herself. A 22-year-old Ukrainian stated, “No matter how horrible it sounded, [the stabbing] was yet another confirmation of my concerns.” The 22-year-old was referring to an uptick in violence. Ukrainian officials have chosen to stay out of the debates, as they consider the incident a domestic affair.
The footage of Decarlos’ assault has been circulated online, leading to outrage in both the US and Ukraine.
Many Ukrainians are dumbfounded by the amount of misinformation about the murder. Laura Loomer, who is a MAGA commentator, has a false claim that no Black people on the train went to the aid of Iryna, as she had fallen from her chair, bleeding to death. This was false, as in the footage, two Black individuals were seen rushing towards Iryna.
A 33-year-old woman, Kseniya Mikhalehuk, who is a pharmacy clerk, says that she believes this killing symbolises Washington’s inaction towards Russia’s actions in Ukraine. Kseniya stated, “This is exactly what the United States has been doing to Ukraine for 11years-everyone silently watches as we bleed to death,”.
Many Ukrainians now believe that the US is an “unsafe” nation with rampant crime.