Iryna Zarutska update: Was DeCarlos Brown Jr released from prison for treatment? Here's the truth
Reports claiming DeCarlos Brown Jr was freed after killing refugee Iryna Zarutska are false; a judge only ordered a mental health evaluation, not release.
On Monday, the case of Iryna Zarutska, the Ukrainian refugee stabbed to death by suspect DeCarlos Brown Jr inside a Charlotte, North Carolina transit railway, got a major twist. Reports claimed that Brown Jr was “released from prison” by a judge so that he could take admission at a hospital to treat his mental illness.
The reports of Brown's release for admission to a private hospital were first shared by Ken Silva, a journalist associated with a news outlet called Headline USA. Silva reported that Judge Roy Wiggins of North Carolina ordered that DeCarlos Brown Jr be sent to Central Regional Hospital in Charlotte.
However, the order was misrepresented in many social media posts, as Judge Wiggins did not order a "release" of DeCarlos Brown Jr from prison. As per the order, signed Friday (September 12), the said that he is sending Brown Jr to the mental health facility in order to assess if he is ready to face trial. It was not a full release of Brown Jr, who is accused of the murder of the brutal Iryna Zarutska.
Given DeCarlos Brown's past history of mental illness, it is normal procedure to "determine the defendant's capacity to proceed with the trial." Judge Wiggin's statement was misconstrued by many on social media to suggest that Brown Jr has been released, which is not the case.
A copy of the judge's order was also shared by Ken Silva:
Here's the order in case anyone wants to see it for themselves pic.twitter.com/7LTVKUrepy
— Ken Silva (@JD_Cashless) September 14, 2025
Extensive CCTV Footage Released
The murder, which took place on August 22, shot to the headlines earlier in September after the CCTV footage of DeCarlos Brown Jr, the suspect, was obtained and leaked on social media. Now, an extended version of that video was obtained by Headlines USA and released on X and other platforms. We are not including the video as it contains graphic details.
The initial CCTV footage released showed Iryna Zarutska boarding the train and sitting in front of DeCarlos Brown, who was also one of the travelers in that coach. After a while, without any interactions, Brown Jr gets up, takes out a pocket knife, and slits Zarutska's throat.
