Former TikTok Star Sentenced For Murdering His Wife And Her Male Friend
A former TikTok star was sentenced Friday to life in prison without parole for fatally shooting his estranged wife and another man in their Southern California high-rise apartment in 2021.
A jury in May found Ali Abulaban, 32, guilty on two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Ana Abulaban, 28, and Rayburn Barron, 29, who had been cuddling on the couch when he burst into the apartment and fired six shots at them.
Abulaban, a rising star on TikTok known for his comedic “Scarface” impressions, did not deny killing his wife and her friend but testified that he “snapped” after finding them together in the San Diego apartment that the Abulabans had shared with their young daughter.
Ali Abulaban’s defense team argued that he had acted in the heat of passion and asked the jury to find him guilty of the lesser charges of voluntary manslaughter or second-degree murder. The jury, however, found that the killings were premeditated and intentional.
The couple were separated at the time of the murders after a volatile marriage marred by years of Ali Abulaban’s abusive behavior, including physically assaulting his wife.
On the morning of the killings, while the couple’s then-5-year-old daughter was at school, Ali Abulaban broke into the apartment and hid a microphone device in his wife’s bedroom so he could listen remotely.
When he heard live audio of his wife with Barron, Ali Abulaban drove to their building from the hotel where he was staying. A number of surveillance cameras captured him outside the property and riding the elevator to the 35th floor. Audio from a neighbor’s surveillance camera, which was played in court, caught the sound of six shots being fired, and a scream.
The first-degree murder charges included allegations of using a handgun in the killings. Because the jury had also affirmed the special-circumstance allegation of committing multiple murders, he faced two mandatory sentences of life in prison without parole. The judge on Friday rejected the defense attorney’s request that Abulaban serve his sentences concurrently, instead ordering them to be consecutive.
Emotions ran high in the courtroom Friday.
In response to a prosecutor’s comment while the judge was hearing the defense team’s motion for a mistrial — which he denied — Abulaban shouted “bullshit,” and Ana Abulaban’s sister yelled back at him from the gallery.
She and other relatives of the victims delivered statements on the killings affected the families. Barron’s sister, Sylvia Barron, spoke to Ali Abulaban directly.
“Your sick narcissism cut short two beautiful lives at their prime and left a devastation of broken hearts on Ray’s and Ana’s side, and your side as well,” she said.
Abulaban was the last to speak and apologized — while still refusing to accept full responsibility for the murders. He complained about his sentence, saying it wasn’t “right” that he would be denied the opportunity for parole.
“I don’t think that’s fair at all,” he said, “especially after it has been made clear that drugs and alcohol were involved. And add that to infidelity and mental illness, and you’ve got a recipe for disaster, one that anyone could fall into.”
Judge Jeffrey F. Fraser said he didn’t believe any of Abulaban’s crimes were connected to his mental health or substance abuse.
“He’s a very talented actor,” the judge said, referring to Abulaban’s behavior in his courtroom and his TikTok videos.
“When I saw the ‘Scarface’ videos, it’s as if, when he committed these crimes, he became that persona of Scarface — just coldblooded killing without remorse. Any tears that he’s cried in this courtroom have been for himself. They are not for Ray and Ana. … He’s somebody that is only thinking about himself. And the idea of killing two innocent people doesn’t disturb him. It’s chilling,” the judge said.
“So the bottom line here is he will die in prison. He will never be a free man. He will take his last breath there.”
The courtroom erupted in applause. Abulaban turned and sneered at them and made a show of clapping his own hands.
Need help? In the U.S., call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) for the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
