Death penalty threatened to accused of murdering Ukrainian refugee in the US

A U.S. federal grand jury has indicted Decarlos Brown Jr. for the murder of 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska in Charlotte, North Carolina. This charge carries the possibility of the death penalty, reports NBC News channel.

A grand jury found that Brown intentionally killed Zarutska during the August 22 attack on a Charlotte public transit system light rail, according to a federal indictment.

On this charge, the defendant faces the highest form of punishment.

Attorney Lauren O. Newton, representing the victim's family, said they were "pleased with the indictment and we look forward to swift justice for Iryna." Brown's representatives said they had no comment.

Zarutska boarded the tram on August 22 at around 10 p.m. and took an empty seat in front of Brown, as seen in the video of the attack and according to the federal lawsuit. According to the document, Brown pulled a knife from his pocket, unsheathed it, and stabbed the woman three times from behind before walking away.

The victim died on the spot, Newton said.

Local police said that Zarutska was found in the back of the tram alongside "a large amount of blood," and that a pocket knife and a red shirt, which investigators believe was soaked in blood, were found at the scene, the lawsuit said.

Brown was arrested on the station platform where a stabbing was reported. In September, he was charged with committing an act that caused death on the public transportation system. Police charged the man with first-degree murder.

Zarutska's family said that she had recently moved to the United States from Ukraine to escape the Russian war. She lived with her partner and took courses at a local college to improve her English.

After receiving her work permit, she began helping out at a senior center and a pizzeria, and took care of her neighbors' pets, James Barnacle, deputy assistant director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's criminal division, said in September.

"Iryna came here to find peace and safety, and instead her life was stolen from her in the most horrific way," Zarutska's family previously stated.

The woman's death attracted the attention of the whole of America and drew criticism from right-wing politicians. Attorney general Pam Bondi said that the crime was "a direct result of failed soft-on-crime policies that put criminals before innocent people."

The criminal "history" of the defendant Brown goes back more than 10 years and includes burglary and robbery with a dangerous weapon, according to court documents. According to them, the man served five years in prison on robbery charges.

• Although Zarutska's murder took place in late August, the crime became public knowledge in early September after the video of the attack was published and publicized on social media and in the media. US president Trump also responded to the incident, calling for the suspect to be convicted to the death penalty, and also used the tragedy of the to criticize his Democratic opponents.