Husband and wife stabbed her ex lover with to death after he began sharing 'intimate' images of her

Published: 20:37, 4 August 2026 | Updated: 20:39, 4 August 2026 A husband and wife armed themselves with kitchen knives before repeatedly stabbing the woman's former lover to death after he allegedly shared intimate photos of her with family members, according to a newly released court ruling. Riza Jafari, 34, was sentenced to 10 years in prison last month after a jury convicted him of manslaughter in the June 17, 2024, killing of 40-year-old Fred Sangan in Burnaby, British Columbia. His wife, Hatice Haydari, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and is due to be sentenced later this month. A sentencing decision published Friday revealed new details about the motive for the killing and the brutal attack that left Sangan dead.  According to the ruling, Haydari had been having an extramarital affair with Sangan, during which he obtained intimate photos and videos of her. In the days before the killing, Sangan and his fiancée, Sophia Soltani, allegedly created a fake social media account in Haydari's name and sent links containing the explicit images to several of her family members. The judge said Haydari sought help from police but received none. Jafari also met with Soltani in an unsuccessful attempt to resolve the dispute before the fatal confrontation. On June 17, Haydari agreed to meet Sangan in hopes of convincing him to hand over the photos and videos and stop what the court described as his campaign to shame her. Burnaby RCMP officers responded to the fatal stabbing on East 1st Avenue near Ingleton Avenue on June 18, 2024, one day after Riza Jafari and his wife, Hatice Haydari, fatally stabbed Fred Sangan, who suffered 35 sharp-force injuries. The intersection of East 1st Avenue and Boundary Road in Burnaby, British Columbia, near where Fred Sangan was fatally stabbed on June 17, 2024 Jafari accompanied her, and both concealed kitchen knives in their clothing before arriving at the meeting. Haydari got into Sangan's vehicle alone while Jafari waited nearby. During the meeting, Haydari grabbed Sangan's cellphone and threw it from the vehicle. The judge said Sangan responded by slapping her and grabbing her around the neck and face. Seeing the confrontation, Jafari rushed toward the driver's door, slipped a knife from his sleeve into his hand and immediately began stabbing Sangan as he tried to climb out of the vehicle. The ruling says Haydari repeatedly shouted 'no' and initially tried to pull her husband away. But the violence escalated after the three struggled outside the vehicle. During the melee, Jafari urged his wife to join the attack, shouting: 'Hit him, Narges,' using her first name, according to the judge. The court found that both repeatedly stabbed Sangan before Haydari stopped and asked a bystander to call 911. Jafari briefly paused, then returned to Sangan as he lay face down on the pavement. A witness told the court Jafari knelt over the wounded man, whispered something in his ear, stabbed him in the back, whispered again and stabbed him a second time. Defense attorney David Jardine, KC, represented Riza Jafari during his manslaughter trial and sentencing The Law Courts building, which is home to BC Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal, in Vancouver Sangan suffered 35 sharp-force injuries and died from blood loss and damage to multiple vital organs, the court heard. Jafari then photographed Sangan's body and texted the image to Soltani along with a message in Farsi that translated to: 'You're next, don't choke.' The couple fled after seeing a group of people approaching with pipes and sticks but returned a short time later and surrendered to police. Officers recovered both knives from their car. The couple were originally charged with second-degree murder, with police saying at the time that everyone involved knew one another and there was no ongoing threat to the public, per the Vancouver Sun.  In imposing sentence, Justice Michael Tammen said Jafari's conduct amounted to aggravated manslaughter. 'The assault committed by Mr. Jafari was prolonged and sustained,' the judge wrote. 'Part of that assault involved two armed assailants repeatedly stabbing a single unarmed victim.' The judge added that any attempt to defend Haydari ended almost immediately because the force Jafari used 'was excessive from the outset' and 'can safely be labelled grossly disproportionate.' He also described Jafari's decision to photograph Sangan's body and send the image to the victim's fiancée as evidence of 'extreme' callousness. Jafari had no prior criminal record and expressed remorse before sentencing. The court also heard he had been a model inmate while in custody.  He and Haydari, who married in Iran in 2016 before moving to Canada in 2022, have two young children who remain in government care. The Daily Mail has contacted the British Columbia Prosecution Service, the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team, Burnaby RCMP, the British Columbia Supreme Court and defense attorney David Jardine for comment.