Ex-wife says she noticed change in behavior from Houston man accused of killing Washington podcaster
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- The ex-wife of a Houston man accused of killing a podcaster and her husband in Washington said she noticed his behavior changed in the weeks leading up to the murder.
Ramin Khodakaramrezaei, 38, traveled from Texas to Redmond, Washington, and shot Zohreh Sadeghi and her husband to death early Friday morning before killing himself, according to police.
The man's ex-wife, who did not want to be identified, told ABC13 that he told her about Sadeghi last year and said they were dating. He also told her he did not believe that she was married.
Khodakaramrezaei later told his ex-wife that he and the podcaster had broken up against his wishes.
She said her ex-husband's behavior changed after that. She said he was crying the final few times she spoke with him.
Police have never confirmed that the two dated but did say they had "be-friended" one another through social media after he listened to her podcast.
Sadeghi, who worked as a software engineer, had a podcast dedicated to people who speak Farsi and were seeking jobs in the tech industry.
Khodakaramrezaei's ex-wife said she was surprised he took things as far as killing the woman and her husband.
An application for a protective order was filed by Sadeghi exactly one week before she was killed.
In it, the software engineer said she feared for her safety because of Khodakaramrezaei's behavior which she described as "aggressive and abusive."
SEE PREVIOUS REPORT: Washington podcaster filed protection order against Houston area man before being killed, police say
"I had a major back surgery, and my mobility has been affected, and I need care 24/7," Sadeghi wrote in the application. "This makes me fear about my ability to respond to a crisis, especially because Mr. Khodakaramrezaei has ignored all other avenues."
In the 12-page detailed account of her interactions with the man, she wrote that she had told him to leave her alone and blocked his phone numbers and social media. Still, she wrote that he continued to call her, her husband, and her friends and showed up to places he knew she would be.
The man told Sadeghi that the only way he would leave her alone was if he was dead.
Redmond police said they had trouble finding Khodakaramrezaei to serve him the protective order because he was a long-haul truck driver.
"In this case, the victim did everything that they possibly could," Redmond Police Chief Darrell Lowe said. "It's a tragic event."
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