Auburn man strangles wife to death in ‘honor killing’

An Auburn man was charged with murder after he called police early in the morning Nov. 23 and told them that he had killed his wife.

On Nov. 26, the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office (KCPAO) charged Sayed Sadat, 37, of Auburn, with first-degree murder after, according to charging documents, he strangled his wife, Geety Sadat, 43, to death.

According to documents, Sayed Sadat said that around 7 a.m. Nov. 23, he killed Geety Sadat as an “honor killing” because he suspected that she was having an affair.

The King County Medical Examiner reported that Geety Sadat’s cause of death was asphyxiation by manual strangulation, her manner of death was homicide, and the location where she died was a residence.

According to the King County Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention jail lookup portal, Sayed Sadat is currently at the King County Correctional facility on a $3 million bail.

Prosecutors stated in documents that while Sayed Sadat has no criminal history, he is from Afghanistan and only emigrated to the United States in the last three years. Additionally, because of the severity of the charges he faces, he must be considered a high risk to flee the country if released. Prosecutors also stated that if Sayed Sadat posts bail, he should be required to surrender his passport and be placed on electronic home monitoring.

Details of the case

According to charging documents, at about 7:42 a.m. Nov. 23, Sayed Sadat called 911 from his apartment in the 1700 block of Southeast 312th Street in Auburn and reported that he had strangled his wife to death about 30 minutes prior. When Sayed Sadat spoke to officers, he stated that he had been having recent issues of doubt with his wife for the last year, and he had warned his wife, but she didn’t listen.

Sayed Sadat said that his three children were also in the home, but that they did not witness the killing, and his sister was on the way to pick them up. Documents state that when officers searched Sadat’s home, they located his three children sleeping, and officers took them into protective custody. Sadat told officers that he and Geety had three children together, ages 6, 9 and 11.

Officers located Geety Sadat in the home, deceased, and found numerous large bruises on Geety’s throat and neck. Bruising consistent with finger impressions was also found on her body.

Documents state that after an officer informed Sadat of his Miranda Rights, he told an officer that he strangled Geety Sadat with both of his hands for about 15 minutes after he snapped that morning. Sadat told officers that he snapped because he had suspicions that Geety Sadat was having an affair with her niece’s husband.

During an interview, Sadat told officers that in 2013, in an arranged marriage, he and Geety were married in Afghanistan, and that they moved to the United States in 2023. Sadat told officers that he warned Geety about three times about having an affair.

Sadat told officers that in Afghanistan, it is common for people who are caught in an adulterous relationship to be killed. According to documents, Sadat stated that he thought about killing Geety many times because he was confident that she was having an affair.

Sadat told officers that his suspicions about Geety having an affair grew from overhearing a conversation. Documents state that Sayed Sadat said he could not explain the context or content of these conversations, but described them as being inappropriate because of culture.

Sadat told officers that he had debated about whether to kill Geety for the past seven to 10 days before he killed her. He told officers that on the night of Nov. 22, he decided that he would kill Geety the next morning.

“Sayed said that he woke at approximately 7 a.m. on Nov. 23, (and) he felt as though he had no patience and said to himself, ‘That’s it,’” documents state. “Sayed said Geety was still sleeping in bed next to him. Sayed described rolling Geety onto her back and climbing on top of her.”

Sadat told officers that he strangled Geety for about 15 to 20 minutes until he was confident that she was dead. According to documents, Sayed Sadat described killing his wife as an “honor killing” because his wife dishonored the family by having an affair.

Sadat told officers that the man he alleges his wife was having an affair with should be killed, too, but he was unsure how to kill him. Sadat stated that the man he believes his wife was having an affair with is bigger and stronger than him, so he would need a weapon to kill him, but he does not know where to get a gun.

Documents state that officers spoke to the man whom Sadat believes Geety was having an affair with. The man said that Sayed Sadat would call him anytime he needed anything, and the families saw each other regularly. Documents state that officers believed there was no indication from the man that he was involved in or had any knowledge of Geety Sadat being involved in any adulterous relationships.

Domestic violence in 2025

According to KCPAO spokesperson Casey McNerthney, Geety Sadat’s death was the 13th domestic violence homicide in King County during 2025. McNerthney said that one of the homicides was family violence, and the other 12 were intimate partner violence.

“Domestic violence is not a private matter. It’s a public safety crisis,” said David Martin, Chair of the KCPAO Domestic Violence Unit. “Behind every statistic is a person whose life mattered, and a family and community left to grieve. Awareness must mean more than recognition. It must drive the change that saves lives.”

McNerthney said that in 2024, a crime victims report produced by the KCPAO showed that nearly 30% of the 5,070 filed adult felony cases involved gender-based violence. McNerthney said that, additionally, more than half of felony domestic violence survivors in King County are women of color.

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Editor’s note: This story has been revised since its original posting.