CHARLOTTE — Police in North Carolina have charged a 33-year-old man with critically injuring another person in a stabbing on a Charlotte commuter train, just a few months after a Ukrainian refugee riding one of the city’s trains was killed in an unrelated knife attack.
Oscar Gerardo Solorzano-Garcia, 33, was charged with attempted first-degree murder, assault with a deadly weapon and other crimes stemming from the Friday afternoon attack in which he wielded a large knife, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) said in a news release.
Police said the victim suffered a stab wound and was hospitalized in critical but stable condition.
Solorzano was being held in jail Saturday without bond. A magistrate judge said in a court filing that the suspect was in the U.S. illegally and had previously been deported. He faced a hearing Monday morning in Mecklenburg County District Court.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced Saturday that it filed an arrest detainer for Solorzano.
“This heinous stabbing by this twice removed illegal alien should have NEVER happened.,” said Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. “ICE lodged an arrest detainer to ensure Oscar Gerardo Solorzano-Garcia is not released back into North Carolina neighborhoods. Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee the county will honor the detainer since they have a history of not cooperating with ICE.”
“Under President Trump, ICE is being unleashed to ensure public safety for all Americans,” said Noem. “Make no mistake: We will not rest until every depraved criminal illegal alien is removed from our communities.”
An arrest warrant filed in a North Carolina court says Solorzano appeared to be intoxicated and was slurring his words when he challenged the victim to a fight.
CMPD issued an update on the arrest, listing Solorzano’s charges as Attempted First Degree Murder, Assault with Deadly Weapon Serious Injury, Break/Enter Motor Vehicle, Carrying Concealed Weapon, and Intoxicated and Disruptive.
Online court and jail records did not list an attorney for Solorzano.
The attack comes less than four months after a 23-year-old woman from Ukraine was killed on a Charlotte commuter train in an apparently random assault captured on video. The victim, Iryna Zarutska, had been living in a bomb shelter in Ukraine before coming to to the U.S. to escape the war, her relatives said.
A suspect, Decarlos Brown Jr., has been charged first-degree murder for Zarutska’s killing in a North Carolina state court, and was also indicted in federal court on a charge of causing death on a mass transportation system.
The death of the Ukrainian woman sparked anger among allies of President Donald Trump and figures in his Make America Great Again movement. Many pointed to the case as evidence that federal intervention was needed because leaders of large cities and state governors are failing to protect their residents from crime and rampant illegal immigration.
In November, the Trump administration increased immigration enforcement in Charlotte. City officials said the surge in enforcement caused “unnecessary fear and uncertainty.”
Trump commented Saturday about the latest stabbing on his Truth Social site. “Another stabbing by an Illegal Migrant in Charlotte, North Carolina. What’s going on in Charlotte? Democrats are destroying it, like everything else, piece by piece!!! President DJT”
Gov. Josh Stein had issued comments on X about the stabbing the day prior.
“I just spoke with Chief Patterson about the horrific stabbing on the light rail this evening. Please join me in praying for the full recovery of the victim,” Stein wrote. “I am pleased that Chief Patterson was already surging law enforcement throughout Charlotte with Operation Safe Season, and I am grateful to the state law enforcement agencies that are assisting the operation. Public safety is a top priority for us all.”
North Carolina House Speaker Destin Hall (R-Granite Falls) wrote in an X post that the stabbing was “committed by an illegal alien,” before pivoting to stating leaders in the state need to cooperate with ICE. He specifically addressed Stein, writing “it’s time to step up and do more to protect NC citizens.”
Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles issued a statement the day after the attack, which read in part, “Everyone deserves to be and feel safe in our city, and there is no room for violence in our community.”
“We have invested heavily in increasing security on our transit system and CMPD has been proactive in increasing its presence across our city, including announcing a new multi-agency effort this week,” Lyles said. “There are several aspects of public safety that are outside of the city’s jurisdiction, including immigration policy and enforcement, but we will continue to focus on public safety and ensuring a safe and vibrant community.”
Charlotte Area Transit System Interim CEO Brent Cagie also issued the following formal statement:
“We are disappointed that a verbal altercation escalated to the point of a stabbing incident on a Blue Line train Friday evening. Through close collaboration between CATS private security team (PSS) and CMPD, a suspect was apprehended swiftly following the incident. Since August, CATS, together with our partners, have taken a proactive and robust approach to keep employees and passengers as safe as possible by deploying additional off-duty CMPD officers, private security personnel, new technology and safety reporting tools. Violence has no place in our community, including on public transit. Individuals who believe public transit can be used as an area to settle grievances through violent altercations are not welcome on our system. We will continue to work with our partners at CMPD as well as our private security team to ensure everyone rides appropriately on public transit. We will not compromise on the safety of our customers and employees.”
North State Journal contributed to this report.
This article has been updated to reflect the suspect’s name from Oscar Solarzano to Oscar Gerardo Solorzano-Garcia, as indicated by a press statement by the Department of Homeland Security.
