By Candice Marcus
Updated March 07, 2012 09:08:43
A man accused of stabbing his wife to death at a crowded function at the Adelaide Convention Centre has gone on trial for murder.
The prosecution said he was a violent and abusive husband who wanted to make his wife pay for leaving him.
The South Australian Supreme Court heard Ziaolloh Abrahimzadeh went to the Convention Centre with a knife hidden under his jacket.
His wife Zahra was there with one of their daughters for a Persian New Year's Eve celebration in 2010.
The court heard she became concerned for her safety when she saw her estranged husband arrive.
Prosecutor Sandi McDonald said Abrahimzadeh waited until his wife was looking in her handbag then stabbed her in the back, continuing his attack when she fell to the ground.
The court heard people nearby wrestled the knife from him, but the victim had been stabbed eight times.
The prosecution said Abrahimzadeh allegedly was heard to say 'She's mine, she's done a shameful thing' and 'You betrayed me', before the woman was stabbed repeatedly in front of 300 guests.
Ms McDonald told the jury a restraining order had been imposed on the accused less than two weeks before the attack because of his history of domestic violence towards his wife and children.
"He used his anger, his fists, his feet and his belt to punish and control his wife and at times his family," she told the hearing.
The accused's son, Arman Abrahimzadeh, has been the first of the couple's three children to give evidence for the prosecution case.
He has told the court his father often punched and beat his mother, and he abused his children for bringing 'shame' to their family.
Mr Abrahimzadeh said he fled the domestic violence with his mother and sisters less than a year before his mother's death.
He said his father kept threatening them and said he would take his revenge sooner or later.
The trial continues.
Alleged wife killer denies domestic violence
Updated March 07, 2012 09:06:57
VIDEO: Alleged wife killer takes stand (7pm TV News SA)
A man accused of murdering his wife at a crowded function at the Adelaide Convention Centre has denied ever being physically violent towards her.
Ziaolloh Abrahimzadeh replied 'No' when asked in court if he was ever physically violent towards his wife Zahra.
The court previously heard evidence from the couple's three children that their father had subjected his family to years of domestic abuse.
They said their father controlled their mother and slapped and whipped both his wife and children if they did something he disagreed with.
Abrahimzadeh broke down during his evidence while describing how his wife had changed once she gained independence in Australia.
Later in his evidence, he told the court he did not remember stabbing his wife and thought he was dreaming or hallucinating when he was dragged away.
He said he had felt upset and broken and been preoccupied with divorce proceedings and financial stresses.
It is alleged Abrahimzadeh repeatedly stabbed his estranged wife in March 2010 in front of 300 people at a function because he felt she had dishonoured him by leaving him.
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