May 20, 2022
An Iranian husband has been convicted of bludgeoning his Iranian wife to death in Britain and leaving her battered corpse in the bathroom to be found by their son.
Malak (Katy) Adabzadeh, 47, was battered to death by Mohammad Ureza Azizi, 58, at their home near Liverpool. Azizi used an unidentified weapon to inflict 11 head injuries, as his wife desperately tried to defend herself.
He trashed their apartment to make it look like it had been ransacked by a mystery attacker, before later returning with his son, and letting him find his mother “in a pool of blood” face down in the bathtub. Liverpool Crown Court was told Azizi earlier found out his wife was having an affair with a married man, Tooraj Khorshidi.
Questioned about the affair, Azizi told police: “Culturally, in the past, it was unacceptable this matter and you could be stoned to death.”
Jailing Azizi for life with a minimum of 16 years, Judge Andrew Menary said he had no doubt that Azizi had discovered that his wife “had packed a bag and was ending the marriage.”
Liverpool Crown Court heard Adabzadeh and her then teenage son, Payam Azizi, emigrated from Iran to the UK in 2018 and were granted asylum. Her husband joined them 15 months later. Prosecutor David McLachlan said their relationship soon “become strained” and Azizi slept in the living room while his wife slept in a bedroom.
Their son, 21, told police his mother told his dad that “they may be married on paper but he was not her husband in her heart.” He never witnessed any violence between them and said “most of the yelling would come from his mother toward his father.”
The court heard Adabzadeh started a sexual relationship with Khorshidi, another Iranian national. Khorshidi initially denied the affair to police, but later admitted it.
Last November 25, Adabzadeh planned to meet Khorshidi and spend the night with him in Liverpool. However, she didn’t turn up and Khorshidi couldn’t reach her. He twice went to her home and then called her son, who was at college.
The court heard they had exchanged WhatsApp messages, in which Khorshidi referred to her as “my doll” and said “I die for you.” and she called him “dear” until she sent a final text at 11:57 a.m. the day of her death.
That afternoon, Azizi walked around a shopping area and went into shops, without buying anything, apparently so he would appear on security videos and had an alibi.
Questioned about his wife’s affair with Khorshidi, he said: “We had a very good relationship together. How can he have affair with my wife? I cannot believe, but culturally in the past it was unacceptable this matter and you could be stoned to death. But now things has changed and it is easier for people to decide what they want to do with their life.”
Azizi disputed the evidence of neighbors who heard “banging and crying” and denied killing his wife. He said he loved her and they didn’t have any problems.
The prosecutor said, “After killing her, he set upon an intricate plan. He made sure he left the flat in a state so that it would appear that it had been ransacked, in other words burgled, but it had not.”
McLachlan said: “When they [Azizi and his son] entered the flat, Mohammed Azizi made sure that he did not find his dead wife. He checked every other room bar the bathroom. It was Payam who discovered the body of his mother.”
Azizi, who had no previous convictions, finally admitted to the murder. Defense attorney Nick Johnson said all the evidence suggested Azizi had never been violent to his wife previously and had “done his very best over the years to act as a husband should.”
He said Azizi, who didn’t speak English, was “culturally isolated” in England, while his wife had “embraced life in the UK,” wanted to leave her husband, and was treating him with “open hostility and aggression.” The defense attorney said that in no way justified his “wholly unforgivable” actions, but his son had said: “He really loved my mother. She would tell him we’re not together anymore.”
Payam said his mother would tell her husband, “You’re not my husband” and he “couldn’t accept” and “couldn’t understand that,” but all the verbal “attacks” came from his mother, trying to “destruct” him.
He said his client was remorseful for the “dreadful” killing and leaving his son alone without any family. Judge Andrew Menary said Azizi “deliberately” tried to “cover up” the murder, then let his son find his mother.
The judge said: “You could have prevented that. If you had wanted to be merciful to your son, you could have avoided that.”