Man Follows Ex-Wife to Chicago to Kill Her After She Shares Divorce Struggles on TikTok

The Chicago Police Department responded to a murder-suicide situation involving a man and his ex-wife, who relayed her divorce struggles on TikTok.

Sania Khan, 29, was shot dead by her ex-husband, Raheel Ahmed, 36, after he followed her from Atlanta, Georgia, to Chicago, where she lived after their separation in June 2021.

While Khan died on the scene, the police were still able to take Ahmed to Northwestern Hospital, where he was declared dead by doctors. His death was ruled out as suicide, while Khan's death was considered a homicide, per ABC News.

Khan found empowerment by sharing her divorce journey

Khan, a professional photographer and native of Tennessee started sharing her divorce struggles on TikTok to urge women to be aware of the signs and red flags in a troubled relationship. She found empowerment on the social network platform and detailed her struggles as a woman in the South Asian community.

The woman said she did not get much support from her own family due to their conservative culture when she decided to divorce less than a year after her marriage to Ahmed. One of her videos, which talked about getting lectures from family members during her divorce journey, went viral.

@geminigirl_099 Hugs to anyone going through this too #southasian #southasiantiktok #muslimdivorce #healing ♬ original sound - Sam Arrow

Family members in Atlanta sought help from the police department after Ahmed went missing. The Atlanta police asked the Chicago police to conduct a welfare check on Khan but found the bloody crime scene instead.

Ahmed allegedly dealt with depression after their divorce was finalized in May 2022. However, Khan's friends said that the ex-couple could not save their marriage anymore as their friend was ready to move on to the next chapter of her life without Ahmed.

Ahmed contemplated murder-suicide while still married to Khan

Gabriella Bordo, a close friend of Khan, said that Ahmed had shown his violent tendencies before. During his marriage to Khan, he allegedly threatened to jump out of their 20-story apartment window and pull his then-wife with him, per News Channel 9.

Bordo said that this was the moment Khan decided to leave Ahmed. She previously suffered physical abuse and had bruises on her body. Khan documented the abuse on her TikTok when she moved to Chicago.

Khan and Bordo were supposed to live together in the Windy City before moving to California. Bordo said she's crushed by what happened to her old friend.

Nearly 70 percent of domestic violence cases occur after the couples separate, according to Dr. Denise Ziya Berte, a South Asian who works with the Peaceful Families Project. She said that Khan did the right thing by leaving her abusive husband and moving to a different city to protect herself.

For those in immediate danger, call 9-1-1 for help. For confidential 24/7 help, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 (SAFE) or 1-800-787-3224 (TTY).