Ali Abulaban, a TikToker fro California who had been charged with the 2021 murder of his estranged wife and her friend, has been convicted by a jury in San Diego.
Abulaban, a 32 year-old who ran a TikTok empire under the handle “JinnKid”, faced two counts of first degree murder with enhancements for the use of a gun in the killings of Ana Abulaban, his now-deceased wife, and Rayburn Cardenas Barron, her friend. In addition to conviction on the first-degree murder charged, the jury found that Abulaban merited conviction of a special circumstances enhancement for committing multiple murders.
Barron’s sister, Jordana Barron, expressed her relief at the verdict to NBC San Diego. While nothing could bring her brother or Ana back, she said, at least they get a bit of justice, and nobody need worry about Abulaban doing the same thing to anyone else in the future.
October 2021 saw authorities called to a high-rise in downtown San Diego, where they found Barron and Ana Abulaban dead on a couch, in the 35th floor Abulaban apartment. Ali Abulaba was later apprehended by police during a traffic stop. He eventually confessed that he and his mother had worked together to commit the murders.
During the trial, the prosecution alleged that the Abulabans had been separated for a considerable period, and were attempting to reconcile. During this period Ali began to suspect that Ana was cheating on him even as the two made overtures towards one another. At the trial, Ali Abulaban’s mother testified that her 32 year-old son had called her on the phone a few moments after the slayings.
Since Abulaban confessed to his crimes, the major issue before the jury was the nature of the acts themselves: Were they intentional? Were they premeditated? Or were they committed in the heat of the moment? All of these factors come into play with a first-degree murder charge.
Taren Brast, the San Diego Deputy District Attorney, said that she believed the jury reached the correct decision.
