A North Carolina city government’s handling of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska’s horrific murder has been scrutinized after details of their meeting to discuss the crime were exposed.
Charlotte City Council held a meeting on September 2 in which one of the main discussions was about he brutal stabbing of the 23-year-old refugee by a career criminal while she rode the city’s light rail on August 22.
Sickening video of the murder sparked outrage on social media after many national media outlets chose not to cover the alleged attacked by Decarlos Brown Jr, 34.
Democrat Mayor of Charlotte Vi Lyles suggested that some publishers chose not to share the footage ‘out of respect for Iryna’s family’ – but the police force she is in charge of made the video public first of all.
But now, the city is being questioned about their ‘tone deaf’ handling of the meeting after it was revealed birthday cake was handed out.
The mayor, city council, and representatives from Charlotte Area Transit (CATS) were present for the meeting, but rather than handle the mounting crisis over her death, they took a five minute break to eat cake for Councilmember Dimple Ajmera’s birthday.
In footage of the meeting, council members gleefully mingled, took photos, and ate their cake as the dark cloud of Zarutska’s death hung over the room.
Local journalist Joe Bruno, posted live updates of the meeting on his X account,
Bruno shared photos of the cake with a knife cutting through it, not dissimilar to the blade used to stab Zarutska.
He wrote: ‘They are indeed taking a break for cake. The CATS safety briefing will have to wait a little longer.’
A few minutes later, the local journalist followed up: ‘Cake time is over. Charlotte City Council is now starting its discussion of the fatal stabbing.’
Iryna Zarutska was senselessly stabbed on a Charlotte, NC light rail train on August 22, the city council met on September 2 to discuss safety on the city’s public transportation
Police released footage of the murder, which took place on Charlotte’s light rail system
Charlotte City Council Paused their meeting to celebrate Councilmember Dimple Ajmera’s birthday
Local journalist Joe Bruno shared photos from the meeting. The council reportedly took a break for cake before addressing Zarutska’s death
The cake break has triggered furious outrage – at a time when locals are slamming liberal media outlets for not covering the massacre that happened on their doorstep.
The account DidUMissThisNews posted: ‘If you want to see how non serious the Charlotte City Council is about the murder of Iryna Zarutska.
‘They took a break talking about it to eat cake for an hour for a birthday.’
‘Local leaders decided this was the time to consume some carbs and sugar for Councilmember Dimple Ajmera,’ another local said.’
Once their tummies were full with cake, the local leaders discussed the tragedy.’
Others called for the local leaders’ resignations: ‘These people all need to be ousted.’
A fourth person said: ‘Charlotte is going to be in big political trouble for all of this. Such distances,’ as another added: ‘Imagine telling grieving family and friends, “We’ll get to your loved one’s murder right after dessert.”
‘That’s Charlotte’s leadership in one snapshot.’
‘Disgusting. This shows their priorities,’ one sickened user wrote online, and another said: ‘Moments like this show how tone-deaf leadership can look in times of crisis.’
In the face of backlash, a representative for the Charlotte City Council, Dr. Victoria Watlington, defended the council’s carb-filled actions.
She told the Daily Mail: ‘We spent several hours discussing the security measures that have been taken to enhance transit and community safety not only in response to this horrific tragedy, but also over the past year.
‘We will continue to improve policy through upcoming Council committee referrals, as well as with our intergovernmental partners. Safety has been a key focus area of the Council, and will continue to be.’
Charlotte City Council was accused of prioritizing a birthday celebration over safety concerns surrounding Iryna Zarutska’s murder. Pictured: The meeting on September 2
Zaruska’s alleged attacker, Decarlos Brown Jr. did not show any signs of violence or mental distress. CATS seems to have ruled her death unpreventable through their security measures
Zarutska was riding the South End Light rail train in Charlotte, NC on August 22, when she was senselessly stabbed from behind.
The Ukrainian refugee came to the United States to flee Russia’s ongoing attack on her home country.
Suspect Decarlos Brown Jr., was seen in video lunged at her from behind, stabbed her, and walked away with a blood-covered knife.
As the twisted video circulated on social media, her death was notably neglected by liberal media.
Once the council finally reconvened on September 2 after their cake break, interim chief executive officer of CATS Brent Cagle stepped forward to discuss upcoming changes to the city’s transit safety systems.
However, when asked if new fare evasion prevention tactics or security measures would have prevented Zarutska’s death, Cagle said: ‘The individual, Mr. Brown, did not present any indications that he was suffering from a mental health break at the time.
‘Again, from what I’ve heard, we do not believe so.’
Her attacker did not have a ticket. He entered the transit system via bus and did not present a pass. But since he didn’t show any signs of violence or mental distress, Cagle said nothing could be done.
He explained: ‘With an open system it will always be impossible to check every passenger everyday.’
It remains to be seen if any CATS security measures could prevent another unsuspecting murderer from slipping through the cracks.
Interim chief executive officer of CATS Brent Cagle said new safety measures would likely not have prevented the August 22 murder
Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles released a second statement on September 6 to ease the community’s anxieties
Brown was wandering Charlotte with a lengthy rap sheet.
According to a Daily Mail review of police records, he has already served five years in prison for armed robbery and has been arrested at least six times over the last seven years.
He was released without bail and a trial pending when he allegedly stabbed Zaruska to death.
Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles released a statement on September 6 addressing the stabbing for the second time more than two weeks later.
She wrote on X: ‘The video of the heartbreaking attack that took Iryna Zarutska’s life is now public.
Iryna Zarutska was a Ukrainian refugee who left her home country to flee Russia’s occupation
‘I want to thank our media partners and community members who have chosen not to repost or share the footage out of respect for Iryna’s family.
‘This was a senseless and tragic loss. My prayers remain with her loved ones as they continue to grieve through an unimaginable time.
‘Like so many of you, I’m heartbroken — and I’ve been thinking hard about what safety really looks like in our city.
‘I remain committed to doing all we can to protect our residents and ensure Charlotte is a place where everyone feels safe.’
It is not yet clear what new safety procedures the mayor will set in place to avoid future attacks.
Zarutska’s family posted a GoFundMe page calling her death ‘an irreplaceable loss.’
Daily Mail reached out to the Mayor’s Office and CATS for further comment on the city’s response to Zarutska’s murder. Bruno declined an interview request to discuss his local coverage with Daily Mail.
