5 things to know about the murder of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska

5. A GoFundMe page set up for Brown has been deleted

Despite the fact that security camera footage shows Brown pulling a knife out of his pocket and preparing to stab Zarutska to death, as well as the moments following the attack showing Zarutska crying in pain, GoFundMe pages were established to raise money for the suspect.

Christina Pushaw, who works for Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, shared a screenshot of one such fundraiser on Sunday. 

The fundraiser described its purpose as to raise money for “legal fees of Decarlos Dejuan Brown Jr.,” insisting that “anything helps fight against the racism and bias of our people” and thanking donors for “giving us a hand to push against this corrupt narrative.” The message included in the fundraiser reflects the fact that Brown is black. 

The crowdfunding platform released a statement Monday announcing that the fundraiser had been taken down: “GoFundMe’s Terms of Service explicitly prohibit fundraisers that raise money for the legal defense of anyone formally charged with a violent crime. Consistent with this long-standing policy, all fundraisers for Decarlos Brown Jr.’s legal defense were swiftly removed from the platform, and any donors who contributed have been fully refunded.”