San Diego TikTok star Ali Abulaban, 31, is on trial for the alleged murder of his estranged wife, Ana Abulaban, and her lover, Rayburn Barron. On Wednesday, Ali testified, describing how he couldn’t stop shooting the pair after finding them in bed together on October 21, 2021.
“I didn’t expect Ana would ever do that to me,” Ali said. He explained that he struggled with drug addiction and mental illness but was trying to fix his marriage. “When I saw that it was him, I couldn’t take it. I couldn’t take the betrayal.”
Ali Abulaban recounted the moment he opened fire. “Before I could stop myself, I just f—ing snapped. My gun was in my hand, and next thing, I’m shooting, and I can’t stop. I’m just shooting, and I’m even startled. It’s like I’m watching it happen, like I’m in the passenger seat of my own body.”
After the shooting, Ali said he called his mother and then 911. “I called 911 to get them help in the chance to save her,” he stated. Following the shootings, he arranged for his then-5-year-old daughter’s care before turning himself in to the police. He collected his daughter from school, and they were soon surrounded by police cars. He told his daughter, “I hurt mommy. I have to go away now.”
Prosecutors allege that Ana Abulaban had asked Ali to move out on October 18, 2021. Ali checked into a hotel but later returned to their high-rise apartment, trashed it, and installed a recording device on his daughter’s iPad. On October 21, he allegedly heard Ana and Rayburn Barron together through the device, prompting him to return to the apartment and shoot Barron three times and Ana once in the head.
At the time of the alleged murders, Ali Abulaban was a well-known TikTok personality with approximately 940,000 followers. He was known for his comedy skits and impersonations of Tony Montana from the 1983 film “Scarface.”
Deputy District Attorney Taren Brast, who spoke after Ali’s arraignment in October 2021, highlighted the premeditated nature of the crimes. Brast emphasized that Ali had installed the recording device specifically to catch Ana with Barron, suggesting a calculated plan leading up to the murders. The prosecution aims to prove that the murders were not a spontaneous act of rage but a deliberate and premeditated action by Ali Abulaban. The trial continues as both sides present their arguments and evidence in this high-profile case.
Ali testified in his own defense, describing his shock and inability to stop the shooting. The trial continues as the court examines the details of the case.
