TikTok star, 32, accused of murdering wife tells court she bragged to him about sleeping with one of his friends…then killed her after hearing her inside apartment with another man

A TikTok star accused of killing his wife and her “lover” told a court he “snapped” after she bragged about sleeping with one of his friends.

Ali Abulaban, 32, who trolled JinnKid on social media, is accused of shooting his wife, Ana Abulaban, 28, and her boyfriend Rayburn Cadenas Barron, 29, on Oct. 21, 2021, in San Diego.

Abulaban stood trial Tuesday on the first-degree murder charge, but Tuesday’s testimony was not even given a chance to address the events of October 21.

The TikToker, who has a history of domestic violence, was reportedly evicted from the couple’s apartment in the luxury Spire San Diego apartment complex.

Prosecutors allege he secretly stole a room key and shot his wife and Barron as they sat on the couch.

During Tuesday’s testimony, Abulaban admitted to hitting and pushing his wife on several occasions, but claimed he never would have done so before the family moved from Virginia to San Diego in early 2021.

Abulaban then painted a picture of the volatile state of his relationship with Ana following the couple’s move – a decision he insists was prompted by his wife.

Ana became obsessed with the move to San Diego — and became angry when anything interfered with their plans to move, Abulaban said.

After his brother suffered a psychiatric episode, Abulaban wanted to postpone the move, but Ana allegedly said, “Take me to San Diego or I will divorce you.”

When the couple finally moved out, they first threw themselves into a life of drugs and partying – a lifestyle allegedly brought on by Ana’s group of friends. Abulaban claims he felt like an outcast and struggled to fit in during his time in San Diego.

“We were a close unit and then we brought these friends into our lives,” Abulaban testified.

Abulaban said the couple began arguing frequently over alleged infidelity on both sides. He recalls a specific fight in July 2021 in which Ana claimed she slept with one of his friends.

Abulaban was high on cocaine at the time and said the comment “shocked me and I snapped.” He then punched her in the face three times.

The accused killer testified in court that he used cocaine to cope with his emotional problems, but that the drugs made him violent and aggressive.

A few days after the argument, the couple argued again because Ana went to an all-girls party, which Abulaban said was an attempt by her friends to ostracize her.

He was also concerned because his wife said they brought their young daughter to the party, which he said would not be appropriate because he assumed there would be drugs there.

He testified that he tried to prevent Ana from going out the front door and in his attempt to keep her out, he pushed her and hit her head on the refrigerator.

Prosecutors previously said Abulaban secretly installed a listening device on his five-year-old daughter’s tablet, and when he heard his wife and another man talking, he went to her San Diego apartment and shot them dead.

Around 3:10 p.m. on the day of the slayings, police found both victims dead on the 35th floor of the Spire San Diego luxury apartment building.

Prosecutors said the “jealous” TikToker believed his wife was cheating on him with Rayburn, while Brast said Ana and Abulaban had been separated for “quite some time” before that.

According to Brast, Ana asked her husband to move on October 18 when he checked into a hotel.

Three days later, Brast said, Abulaban snuck back into the apartment and vandalized it while his wife was away. While he was there, she said he also installed the listening app on his daughter’s iPad.

Prosecutors believe Abulaban copied a key from Anna’s apartment and used it to gain entry.

Abulaban listened to the app hours later and heard his wife and a man talking and giggling before running back to the high-rise, Brast said.

Security camera footage showed him running from the 35th floor elevator to the apartment.

Brast said Abulaban shot Rayburn three times at close range — in the neck, cheek and back of the head — before pointing the gun at his wife and shooting her once in the forehead.

The suspect then called his mother and confessed, Brast said.

“The suspect then fled the building, went to pick up his daughter from school and still had the loaded weapon in his car,” Brast said. ‘[He] told his daughter that he ‘hurt mommy’, after which he was quickly arrested by the police.’

With his young daughter still in the car, Abulaban was stopped by police and arrested later that day, investigators said.

Abulaban faces life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted of all charges and charges. Jurors are expected to begin deliberating by the end of the week.