CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The family history of violence tied to the suspect accused in the killing of 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska has drawn renewed attention to a broader cycle of crime and tragedy.

Authorities confirm that Decarlos Brown Jr., 35, who is charged with fatally stabbing Zarutska aboard a Charlotte light rail train on August 22, has a half-brother with his own history of deadly violence.

Court records show that Stacey Dejon Brown, 22, pleaded guilty in 2012 to the murder of Robert Heym, 65, who was shot in the face while walking home from work. The killing occurred during a robbery on October 2012, in which Brown and accomplice Rodderick Derrick Crawford confronted Heym.

Investigators said Brown’s girlfriend at the time provided key information, telling police that Brown had placed the murder weapon — a sawed-off shotgun — inside her backpack before attempting to hide it. She also told detectives Brown admitted, “I shot the guy,” after the victim resisted.

Police recovered Heym’s cell phone near the Scaleybark light rail station, underscoring how the city’s transit system was again central to a violent crime. Officers responding to nearby gunfire found Heym fatally wounded.

In Mecklenburg County court, Stacey Brown pled guilty to second-degree murder, two counts of robbery with a dangerous weapon, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, and breaking or entering a motor vehicle. He was sentenced to 27 to 36 years in prison.

The case was linked to additional incidents:

In July 2012, Brown participated in breaking into vehicles in a Charlotte parking garage.

One day before Heym’s murder, Brown, Crawford, and Joshwah Townsend robbed another man on West Boulevard. During the robbery, Brown held a shotgun while Townsend took the victim’s belongings. When the victim attempted to flee, Brown shot him in the back. That victim survived with serious injuries.Both accomplices later accepted plea agreements. Crawford pled guilty to two counts of robbery with a dangerous weapon and awaits sentencing. Townsend pled guilty to conspiracy to commit robbery and received a sentence of 17 to 33 months.

The Browns’ history of violent offenses is not isolated. Family members have described a long pattern of legal troubles spanning multiple generations, including arrests involving weapons, break-ins, and other felonies. Some relatives have cited untreated mental illness, including schizophrenia, as a contributing factor.

Community advocates say the tragedy highlights a larger cycle of violence that continues to devastate families and neighborhoods. “This isn’t just about one case — it’s about a cycle that keeps stealing lives, peace, and futures,” one community member said. “We have to break it. That means caring, prevention, healing, and change before another life is erased.”

The deaths of Robert Heym in 2012 and Iryna Zarutska in 2025 — both innocent victims of senseless attacks — serve as painful reminders of the urgent need to address both violent crime and its root causes.

🕊️ May Iryna and all victims of senseless violence rest in peace.