Deadly stabbing witness speaks out about ongoing safety fears

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A woman who witnessed the brutal light rail stabbing is speaking out. The woman paints the picture of the chaos she saw back on August 22nd.

“When I got towards the doorway, there was blood everywhere,” witness Tacara Howard said.

Howard was on the light rail train in a different car the night video shows DeCarlos Brown stabbing Iryna Zarutska to death. The video shows no one tried to stop Brown or immediately helped Zarutska as she laid in a puddle of blood.

“That’s really the scariest part to me that someone didn’t help sooner and the amount of people who were on the train,” Howard said.

After seeing the aftermath of the deadly attack, Howard says she still doesn’t feel safe on the Blue Line, but says her transportation options are limited.

“It’s scary knowing that you have to rely on this because it’s a cheaper alternative than taking Uber, especially if you don’t have your own means of transportation,” Howard said.

CATS spends $18 million dollars on private company Professional Security Services. It nearly tripled its security spending in the last year and consolidated to one company, raising eyebrows at the State Auditor’s office, prompting a data-driven investigation.

“One of the things that we will be seeking to do in our investigation is clarifying how those dollars are spent, what type of return on investment we’re getting for those dollars and then what are the processes being used,” State Auditor Dave Boliek said. “The family of Miss Zarutska actually asked for additional oversight on the security contract. So we want to honor her memory by also digging into the contract.”

After the murder, CATS and city leaders vowed to increase security visibility, which is something Howard says she appreciates. “It’s a little more comfortable, I’m still taking public transportation and I’ve seen a lot more of them (police) showing up,” Howard said.

The State Auditor plans to expedite his investigation, but there’s no timeline on when it would be complete.

WCCB requested the security contracts between CATS and Professional Security Services more than two weeks ago. The city and CATS still have not fulfilled our request. Requests for a one-on-one interview with the CATS CEO and security officials have also been repeatedly denied.