I am also a victim, tyrannical wife murderer Zialloh Abrahimzadeh tells his son
THE inside story of a murderous husband who subjected his Adelaide family to unimaginable cruelty - and will now spend at least 26 years behind bars.
IN a ranting letter to his son, murderous husband Zialloh Abrahimzadeh condemns those who "put wealth and materialism'' before "integrity, principles and dignity''.
Yet Abrahimzadeh did exactly that when he murdered his wife, Zahra, in front of 300 shocked witnesses.
He was, at the time, obsessed with the belief that she had blocked the sale of their Iranian home and denied him thousands of dollars.
Yesterday, Supreme Court judge John Sulan jailed Abrahimzadeh, 57, for at least 26 years.
He said there was no doubt the March 2010 crime was the deliberate act of an "autocratic" man who repeatedly abused his family.
He said the letter, sent by Abrahimzadeh to his son, Arman, showed his lack of remorse.
"It demonstrates how you are completely self-absorbed and fail to have any regret for the misery you have caused to your family," Justice Sulan said.
In the letter, released to The Advertiser, Abrahimzadeh tells Arman he "deplores" enemies "who laid the foundation" for the murder.
"I condemn those who put wealth and materialism ahead of integrity, principles and dignity," he says.
He blames Zahra and her family for driving him "towards insanity" by denying him three quarters of the equity in their former Iranian home. "How much do you think the body and mind of a human being can tolerate?" he says.
"How long can a human being live with fear and anxiety, and with no security?"
Abrahimzadeh fills 1½ pages with details of the family's possessions, including televisions, jewels and gold. "I will not allow anybody to take what is rightfully ours," he says.
"When someone is trying to destroy you in any possible way, you would defend yourself and sometimes this defence results in the destruction of the opposing party."
He closes the letter by asking Arman "as an Eastern man" to judge him fairly.
"In any case, I am really sorry about what happened," he says.
"I think I am also a victim of what happened."
In sentencing, Justice Sulan said Zahra's decision to divorce Abrahimzadeh also fuelled his murderous mentality.
He rejected Abrahimzadeh's claim that, at the time of the stabbing, he was hallucinating about his youngest daughter, Anita, being attacked by "dark, ugly men".
"That was, in my view, fanciful ... I am satisfied, beyond reasonable doubt, that your act was premeditated and deliberate," he said.
"You were motivated by the fact you had lost control of your family, in particular your wife.
"You took action because she continued to disobey your demands that she not proceed with the divorce.
"I accept you were distressed by the family situation ... that may go towards explaining your conduct, but it can never excuse it."
Justice Sulan said he had reduced the non-parole period by 12 months because Abrahimzadeh pleaded guilty in the middle of his trial.
He also took into account incidents when Abrahimzadeh:
SLAPPED his wife and daughters on the face and shoulders.
THREW Zahra into a window.
BROKE a cordless telephone aerial across Atena's throat.
WHIPPED Atena with a belt for an hour.
SMOTHERED Atena will a pillow.
DEMANDED Atena beg, on her knees, for his forgiveness.
BURNED Atena's fingers for biting her nails.
VERBALLY abused Arman.
VOWED to kill his entire family by burning their house down while they were inside.
SAID he would rather kill a family member than be dishonoured by them.
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KILLING 'COULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED'
FOR Arman Abrahimzadeh, the pain of his mother's murder is made worse by his belief it could have been prevented.
"The agonising and searing pain that this coward has caused us is one that will last a lifetime," he said outside court yesterday.
"The malicious nature and character of the criminal is one thing, but the actual fact is that this murder could have been prevented.
"We saw this murder coming and it could have been stopped by authorities," he said.
Arman and his sisters, Atena and Anita, were praised in court by Justice John Sulan.
He dubbed them impressive and intelligent people who showed great courage in giving evidence against the man who destroyed their lives.
Arman, who has signed a Channel 7 interview deal, said police could have acted sooner on restraining orders filed by Zahra, and on their reports of the threats Abrahimzadeh made against their lives.
"Today is just another day where the system failed to protect a brave woman, a caring friend, a loving mother," he said.
"Regardless of the sentence, nothing will ever bring my mother back nor will it give us any form of closure on this horrific chapter of our lives."
His short statement was watched carefully by his father's extended family.
Abrahimzadeh's brother, Masoud, said they would support the killer "to the extreme".
He criticised the trial process which, he said, failed to listen to his brother and account for the "many sacrifices" made for the children.
"This is not a question of excusing what he did or getting him out (of jail)," Masoud said.
"This is a question of how much he should have got, in the sentence.
"I think it should have come down to manslaughter, because there was a lot of provocation."
He said Abrahimzadeh had expressed remorse and "was sorry for what happened". His brother also wanted reporters to interview him in prison so he could tell "more of the story".