TikTok Impersonation Star Pleads Not Guilty To Double Slaying Of Wife And Her Friend At San Diego High-Rise

A TikTok star accused of gunning down his wife and her friend at a San Diego high-rise building earlier this month has pleaded not guilty, prosecutors said this week. 

Ali Nasser Abulaban, who is the prime suspect in the fatal shooting of his wife Ana Abulaban, 28, and her friend, 29-year-old Rayburn Barron, entered his plea during a court arraignment on Monday. The hearing was attended by several members of both victims’ families, according to San Diego television station KNSD.

On Oct. 21, Abulaban entered his wife’s apartment in San Diego’s East Village neighborhood and opened fire on the pair using a handgun, according to a criminal complaint obtained by Oxygen.com. Ana Abulaban was shot in the head; Barron was shot three times in the neck, cheek, and point-blank to the back of his head, police said. 

According to Deputy District Attorney Taren Brast, Ana Abulaban had asked him to move out of the luxury downtown high-rise on Oct. 1, the Associated Press reported. The suspect had reportedly made a copy of their suite’s key without her knowledge and had checked into a hotel.

Days later. he allegedly entered the apartment while his wife was away. Prosecutors say he then rummaged through her belongings and installed spyware on his daughter’s iPad. When he allegedly later heard laughing coming from the mobile app he returned to the building and shot his wife and Barron to death.

After he fled the murder scene, Abulaban allegedly picked up his daughter from school, telling her that he’d “hurt Mommy,” according to KFMB-TV; prosecutors said that he had then confessed to the murder in a phone call to his mother. Abulaban phoned law enforcement while operating his vehicle and was later taken into police custody while his daughter was present. He was charged with two counts of murder, court documents show.

While in the process of breaking off her relationship, prosecutors said, Ana Abulaban had cited a domestic violence incident in which she was shoved by the comic impersonator.

Abulaban, whose TikTok handle is JinnKid, has 945,000 followers on the popular video-sharing platform. He frequently posted impersonation videos and other skits alongside his wife, with whom he appeared to have a playful relationship. Abulaban broadcasted numerous impersonations of Tony Montana, the ruthless crime lord portrayed by Al Pacino in the 1983 film “Scarface.” His most recent TikTok post was five days ago.

Abulaban is being held without bail, according to the San Diego District Attorney’s Office. His next court hearing is scheduled for Oct. 28 and a preliminary hearing is set for Jan. 5. 

Officials declined to comment further on the open case. A full protective order has been issued for Abulaban’s daughter. If he’s convicted, Abulaban faces life in prison.