A
Colorado man who fled to Houston in 2019 after being charged with the
murder of a 31-year-old woman has been sentenced to life in prison for
fatally stabbing an acquaintance
and taking his car, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg announced.
“Houston
is a big and diverse city, and someone on the run may think they can
hide out here. But the cohesiveness of our community is our strength,
and we will find and
prosecute fugitives,” Ogg said. “It is a tragedy that a young man lost
his life because someone he barely knew was trying to escape any
responsibility and accountability.”
Abbas
Abdal Abed, 47, was convicted by a jury earlier this month in the
stabbing death of 29-year-old Abdulrahman Haris on Dec. 15, 2019.
Because
of scheduling conflicts, his sentencing was postponed for a week. After
hearing more evidence, state District Judge Te’iva Bell sentenced him
to life in prison
late Thursday. He must serve at least 30 years before he is eligible
for parole. The murder case in Colorado is pending.
Abed
is accused of killing 31-year-old Chelsea Anne Snider at an
extended-stay hotel in the Denver suburb of Sheridan. Snider died from
blunt-force trauma and stab wounds.
The relationship between Abed and Snider is unclear. Media reports from
Colorado show that Abed worked as an Uber driver and Snider was a
mother of three who had struggled with substance-abuse issues.
After
that slaying, Abed fled to Houston because he had lived here in the
past and knew several people, including Haris. The two men were both
from Iraq and had come
to Houston around the same time. Haris settled here, and Abed moved on.
Haris
apparently gave Abed some money and was taking him to the Wal-Mart at
9460 W. Sam Houston Parkway in southwest Houston. Haris was driving a
gold Toyota Avalon when
Abed stabbed him. Haris pulled over and ran out of the sedan, and Abed
took the vehicle.
Surveillance
video showed Haris getting out of the car in the parking lot and
running toward a group of people for help. He had been stabbed in the
neck and abdomen and
later died of his wounds.
Abed
was arrested about two weeks later by the Houston Police Department at a
west Houston food pantry. The U.S. Marshals Service had blanketed that
part of town with
photos of Abed because he was wanted for the murder in Colorado. A
security guard at the food bank recognized Abed from the flyers and
called police.
Assistant
District Attorney Catherine Johnson, a chief in the DA’s trial bureau,
prosecuted the case with ADA Sarah Dimas. Johnson said the judge made
the right decision
by handing down a life sentence.
“We don’t want Abbas Abed walking the same streets as our families, our friends
or our children ever again,” Johnson said. “He is scary as hell.”