The killer of Ukrainian woman Irina Zarutskaya will not face trial: he was found insane.

A homeless North Carolina man is accused of a brutal attack captured on video that resulted in the death of Ukrainian refugee Irina Zarutskaya. However, his lawyers claim he has been found "incompetent to stand trial," writes Daily Mail.

Lawyers for 35-year-old DeCarlos Brown Jr. said in court papers filed April 7 that his murder trial should be dismissed after a psychiatric evaluation.

Under North Carolina law, a defendant is found incompetent to stand trial if he or she does not understand the charges against him or her, does not understand his or her role in the trial, and is unable to assist in his or her own defense.

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Brown's attorney, Daniel Roberts, said the suspect underwent a competency assessment in December. A psychiatrist at the hospital concluded he was unfit to stand trial on the murder charge.

Zarutskaya died after Brown slit her throat on a train. This occurred in Charlotte, North Carolina, in August 2025.

Brown is also charged with federal crimes in connection with the murder. His lawyers asked the judge to postpone the hearing in that case, as prosecutors must determine whether they will seek the death penalty.

The suspect's defense team said he could not undergo a separate psychiatric examination in the federal case while in custody.

(In the United States, the same crime can be tried under both state and federal laws. This is possible because of a principle called "dual sovereignty." Essentially, the states and the federal government are considered two different "masters," each of which has the right to try an individual.

In Brown's case, North Carolina is charging him with first-degree murder under its own laws, while the federal government is charging him with committing a violent crime on a public transportation system resulting in death.

Thus, the same act—a stabbing on a train—qualifies as two different crimes: one against a person (under state law), and the other against a federally protected transportation system.

In practice, such parallel processes are not very common, but they are possible, especially when a crime occurs at a facility protected by federal law. Approx. Ed.)

This happened after recordings of Brown's first phone conversations were published. He called his relatives from prison and said that something had been implanted in his brain, and that this something had compelled him to kill Zarutskaya.

Brown had previously been detained by police dozens of times, but he was released by North Carolina Magistrate Judge Teresa Stokes just seven months before Zarutskaya's murder.

The killing sparked calls for tougher penalties for repeat offenders after it emerged that Brown, who had previous convictions including armed robbery and assault, was released on a written undertaking to appear in court.

On January 19, 2025, he was arrested on suspicion of "abusing the 911 system" after calling 911 during a manic episode and claiming he had "man-made materials" inside him that were controlling his movements.

CCTV footage captured Zarutskaya sitting alone after her shift at the pizzeria, looking at her phone, as Brown boarded the train and sat behind her.

After a few moments, he appears to pull out a folding knife, then stands up and looms over her.

CCTV footage has been widely shared on social media, showing Zarutskaya cowering in fear seconds before the attack.

The suspect then walks through the carriage, blood dripping from him onto the floor, while the other passengers show little reaction to what has happened.

Brown was arrested shortly thereafter and taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. After his discharge, he was charged with first-degree murder.

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According to her family, Zarutskaya came to the United States shortly before her death, as stated on the GoFundMe fundraising page, "seeking safety from the war and with hope for a new beginning."

The case sparked widespread public outcry at the national level. President Donald Trump mentioned Zarutskaya in his State of the Union address and called for a tougher fight against crime across the country.

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