TikToker Sentenced to LWOP Plus 50 Years for Murdering Wife and Her Friend

San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan announced today that Ali Abulaban, the TikTok personality who killed his wife and her friend in October 2021, has been sentenced to two terms of life in prison without parole plus 50 years to life in state prison.

The sentence was handed down today by San Diego Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Fraser. A jury found Abulaban guilty of two counts of first-degree murder with special circumstances on May 29 after a 16-day trial.

“This defendant mercilessly took the lives of two young people and the pain he left their families with is unimaginable. We hope the guilty jury verdicts and today’s sentence will bring some semblance of justice and peace for the families left behind in the wake of this terrible violence,” DA Summer Stephan said. “Every year, domestic violence kills an average of 13 people in San Diego County. This is a statistic we must confront and continue to fight. One death at the hands of an intimate partner is one too many.”

The evidence in this case proved that defendant Abulaban drove to their apartment with a loaded gun, used a key card to enter the apartment, and immediately killed both his estranged wife Ana Abulaban and her friend Rayburn Barron by shooting them in the head.

Deputy District Attorney Taren Brast worked tirelessly to bring justice and successfully prosecuted this case.

If you or someone you know is being abused by a current or former partner, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline (1-800-799-7233) for confidential support and assistance planning for safety.