Podcaster And Husband Killed By Stalker Who Broke Into Their Washington State Home

In the early morning hours of March 10, 2023, one week after a podcaster went to court to ask a judge for a protection order against her stalker, he broke into the home she shared with her husband and killed them both. The suspect was also found dead in the home.

Ramin Khodakaramrezaei, 38, was a long-haul truck driver from Houston, Texas, who met Zohreh Sadeghi, 33, through a social network group for Farsi speakers. Redmond police spokesperson Jill Green told NBC News that he got to know her because of the podcast she did, and they started to talk and develop a sort of friendship. However, he began sending excessive messages and being intrusive to the point where Sadeghi decided to disengage with him.

Khodakaramrezaei didn’t accept the rejection and started stalking the podcaster. The situation became so alarming that Sadeghi alerted the Redmond Police Department in December 2022, and she followed up about the stalking situation that was intensifying in January 2023. The podcaster was reportedly getting more than 100 calls or messages from Khodakaramrezaei in one day. He also sent gifts and showed up in person.

News outlet KIRO 7 shared that Sadeghi filed a petition for a protection order against the stalker that had terrifying details. Sadeghi stated in the petition, “Khodakaramrezaei has bursts of anger and is completely delusional. These delusions make me fear for my life and the lives of my loved ones.”

In her petition for a protection order, Sadeghi explained that the disturbing messages from the stalker caused her anxiety and insomnia. In addition to harassing her, Khodakaramrezaei contacted Sadeghi’s husband 20 times every day, she explained, and the stalker even told her husband that he had installed an app on his phone that was recording her. Sadeghi wrote that the incident left her feeling really violated.

In response to the stalking, Sadeghi and her husband, Mohammad Milad Naseri, 35, installed security cameras at their home and tried to protect themselves in any way they possibly could, according to Redmond Police Chief Darrell Lowe.

NBC News reported that Khodakaramrezaei was charged with “one count of misdemeanor stalking and two counts of telephone harassment on March 2, the same day a bench warrant was issued for his arrest”. The next day, a judge issued a temporary protection order against Khodakaramrezaei, and a hearing was set for a full protection order.

Khodakaramrezaei wasn’t present at the hearing, but he was ordered to surrender his weapons. However, police officers weren’t able to make contact with him to serve the order or make an arrest, and authorities don’t know how long he had been in Washington before the murders.

In the very early morning hours of Friday, March 10, Khodakaramrezaei broke into Sadeghi’s home through an open window. Once inside, he shot Sadeghi and her husband, then he died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Sadeghi and her stalker were both found dead at the scene. Naseri was able to walk to the front doorway of the home before collapsing. When police arrived, they attempted CPR, but he did not make it.

According to ABC 7, Sadeghi's mother was also home at the time of the home invasion. She escaped the house, ran next door for help, and called the police at approximately 1:45 a.m. that morning. She was unharmed.

Lowe called the killings the "absolute worst outcome for a stalking case." He added, "This is every victim's, every detective's, every police chief’s worst nightmare."