Punishment phase ends in 'honor killing' trial

HOUSTON (FOX 26) - The last person has now testified in the murder trial for the man convicted of killing his daughter’s husband and friend. It’s a witness who defense attorneys did not want to see on the stand as the punishment phase of the trial wrapped up.      

Ali Irsan himself was the last witness to testify, even though his attorneys felt strongly that he should not have done so. FOX 26 News has video of Irsan during the trial but was not allowed to record the testimony on Friday. 

I can tell you Irsan was combative with the prosecutor and she had to ask the judge several times to tell Irsan to answer her questions.

On the witness stand, the now-convicted murderer told jurors that his wife and daughters are lying about being beaten, abused and in some cases, even raped by him. He denied murdering his oldest daughter's husband, whom he didn’t approve of, in 1999 and pointed out he was never charged in the shooting death which occurred in Irsan’s home in Montgomery County.

Irsan was charged and convicted in the 2012 murders of another daughter's husband, Coty Beavers, and her friend, Gelareh Bagherzadeh, after his daughter had also converted to Christianity like the two victims.  

Prosecutors say Irsan is a Muslim extremist who killed Beavers and Bagherzadeh eleven months apart to regain honor after they shamed him. Although Irsan told jurors today, “I did not kill them.”  

Irsan could be sentenced to the death penalty. Closing arguments in the trial are scheduled for Monday at 9 a.m.