Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - Outrage After Video Shows Vagrant Stabbing Ukrainian Refugee on Light Rail | Crime Alert 6AM 09.10.25

Episode Date: September 10, 2025

North Carolina’s governor reacts with outrage after video shows a 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee being stabbed to death on a Charlotte light rail train. A Charlotte police officer who took his own life while on duty is now confirmed to be the first known law enforcement officer diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or C.T.E. Breaking Bad actor Raymond Cruz arrested and accused of spraying a nosy stranger with a hose. Drew Nelson reports.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Crime alert, hourly update. Breaking Crime News now. I'm Drew Nelson. North Carolina's governor reacts with outrage after video shows a 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee being stabbed to death on a Charlotte-light rail train. Arena Zarutzka was killed in an unprovoked attack on August 22nd. She just boarded the Lynx Blue Line, about 10 p.m., still wearing her uniform from work. She was sitting alone, looking at her phone, and a man in a red hoodie sat behind her. After four minutes, he stood up, pulled a folded knife from his pocket, and stabbed her three times in the throat. She collapsed and died on the train as passengers tried to help.

Governor Josh Stein says, quote, I am appalled by the footage of her murder. We need more cops on the beat to keep people safe. He urged lawmakers to pass his plan to fill law enforcement vacancies and, quote, stop these horrific crimes. Police arrested 34-year-old to Carlos Brown Jr. days later. He's charged with first-degree murder. Brown has a long criminal history, armed robbery, breaking and entering, felony larceny. He was released earlier this year after claiming someone had implanted a device in his body. A court ordered a mental health evaluation that was never completed.

Officials say Zerutska and Brown never even spoke to each other. Zerutska fled Kiev in 2022 with her mother, sister, and brother. She worked at Zepiddy's pizzeria, studied to be a veterinary assistant, and walked her neighbor's dogs. Her obituary described her as a gifted artist who was, quote, happiest when surrounded by family. Her death has become a flashpoint with President Trump calling Brown a lunatic and blaming Democrats for letting violent criminals walk free. Charlotte's mayor called it a, quote, tragic failure by the courts. A U.S. attorney said federal charges are under review, quote, we are looking at every way the federal government can bring justice to Irina Zerutska and her loved ones.

More crime and justice news after this. A Charlotte, North Carolina police officer who took his own life while on duty is now confirmed to be the first known law enforcement officer diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE. That's according to the New York Times. Brent Simpson died by suicide in July of last year at the age of 47. He left for work that morning, kissed his wife Gina Elliott, and said he loved her. Two hours later, his boss and other officers showed up at her door, they told her Simpson had shot himself at a cemetery. In the final years of his life, Simpson often told Elliot, quote, something is wrong with my brain. She kept notes as he began to lose his memory and drift from the life that he had built for himself.

He stopped his beloved hobby of woodworking. He no longer trained for his jiu-jitsu black belt. He started crying without warning. He felt a constant pressure behind his right eye. He told her he could not feel joy. Simpson joined the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department in 2006. By 2011, he was training recruits in hand-to-hand combat at the academy. He wore padded gear during the physical combat training, but often returned home bruised and dazed. He later achieved his dream of becoming a canine officer. Still, by 2020, Elliot noticed a sharp change. He talked about retiring early. He seemed distant. One day, when asked to speak at a funeral, he told her, quote, I don't know whether what I'm remembering is real or imagined. In 2023, he entered a mental health rehab program for first responders and was diagnosed with PTSD. Nothing helped. He slept no more than three hours a night. He grew paranoid and kept prepper

supplies in the house. After work shifts, he would sometimes sit and stare blankly at the wall. In early 2024, he tried ketamine therapy and antidepressants. Doctors ran MRIs, blood tests, and other neurological exams, but got no clear answer. Elliot says she felt him slipping further away. After his death, Simpson's brain was donated to Boston University's CTE Center. Dr. Ann McKee, who studied his brain, found lesions in the frontal and temporal lobes, signs of early stage CTE. She told the times, quote, people in these early stages of CTE can have fairly profound behavioral changes

and sometimes personality changes. She noted that Simpson's years of police training, Navy service, and even high school football, all raised his risk. Psychotherapist Stephanie Samuels, who works with law enforcement, told the times many of her patients show similar symptoms, rage, memory lapses, paranoia. She believes CTE has long been overlooked in police suicide cases. Gina Elliott now knows what her husband could not. Quote, My Sweet Baby had to die thinking he was going insane. More than a year has passed, but she still hasn't washed his clothes. Sometimes she drives his truck and reaches across the seat,

pretending he's there to hold her hand. Quote, I lost him twice. He was gone years before he was physically gone. The department has not commented publicly on the CTE diagnosis. If you watched Breaking Bad, you know Tuko Salamanca as one of the most unhinged bad guys ever written. The actor who played him, Raymond Cruz, doesn't have nearly that big of an attitude. But on Monday, he was arrested after a dispute.

outside his home ended with a woman getting sprayed with a hose. Cruz, age 60, was taken into custody in Los Angeles. He was arrested on suspicion of misdemeanor battery. He was booked and released later that day on his own recognizance. No charges have been filed. Cruz's agent, Rafael Burko, says the actor was washing his car when three women parked a white minivan very close to his bumper. Cruise asked them to move. Burko says they refused and began filming him. He says Cruz asked them to stop, while still spraying the car, some water hit their vehicle. And he goes on to say, quote, believe it or not, one of them called the police. Raymond is happy this is done with. He has no criminal history whatsoever. He has no idea who these women are or why they were harassing him in front of his own

home while he was trying to wash a car. Our partners at TMZ first reported the arrest. The case will be reviewed by the L.A. City attorney who may choose to hold an informal hearing or refer Cruz to anger management. Outside of Breaking Bad, Raymond Cruz is best known for playing Detective Julio Sanchez on The Closer and Major Crimes, a role that he held for over a decade. He also appeared in films like Training Day, Alien Resurrection, and the Substitute, often portraying military or law enforcement. For the latest crime and justice news, follow Crime Alert hourly update on your favorite podcast app. With this crime alert, I'm Drew Nelson. This is an I-Heart podcast.

Thank you.