A Texas woman who allegedly stabbed her date during sex in retaliation for a US drone attack that killed an Iranian military leader in 2020 will avoid prison and instead will serve three years of probation.
Nika Nikoubin, 23, was indicted last year on attempted murder, battery with a deadly weapon and burglary in the stabbing of Daniel Trevino, who was wounded when she allegedly stabbed him in the neck. She later agreed to plead guilty to two counts of false imprisonment with a deadly weapon.
Judge Carli Kierny ruled on Wednesday that she would get probation, citing the college student’s mental health struggles. She has suffered from severe depression, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, 8 News Now reported.
Nikoubin, who moved from Iran to America when she was 12 years old, expressed “sincere remorse” to the judge and apologized to the victim.
“I was raped when I was 18 years old by another student,” Nikoubin said in her statement. “At the time, I did not fully realise the impact that this experience had on me, and my mental health deteriorated.”
She added that she was in a mental health facility for 10 days before she traveled to Las Vegas and met Mr Trevino.
“I was diagnosed with a number of disorders including severe depression, schizophrenia, and bi-polar disorder,” she added. “These diagnoses were deeply upsetting to me and, truthfully, I was in denial. While I was prescribed medication to treat my disorders, I initially struggled to properly follow my treatment regimen.”
Nikoubin then told the judge: “Most importantly, your honour, I want to express my deepest apologies to the victim, Daniel, and to the state of Nevada, for the harm that I have caused.”
The woman reportedly met Mr Trevino on the online dating site Plenty of Fish and the pair went to Sunset Station hotel in March 2022 where they started to have sex. Ms Nikoubin then blindfolded her date and then stabbed him in the neck with a knife, it was reported.
Mr Trevino spoke out in court, telling the judge he has the “scars to show” for the 2022 incident, according to 8 News Now.
On the night of the stabbing, he told investigators: “I’ve chosen to forgive but whatever the law decides to do, that’s up to the law.”
At the time, Nikoubin told an investigator that “she wanted revenge against US troops for the killing of Qassem Soleimani in 2020”, and that the song “Grave Digger” had provided “motivation” for attacking the man, who she met on an online dating app, according to a report filed by the Henderson Police Department.
Soleimani was the top Iranian military leader killed in a US drone strike in January 2020 following his reported involvement in Iran’s foreign operations, including against ISIS prior to 2017, and was described by former US president Donald Trump as “the number-one terrorist anywhere in the world”.
Nikoubin’s defence attorney argued to the grand jury last year that the attempted murder charge was inappropriate, pointing out her client did not intend to kill her date, writing, "Nikoubin specifically stated she did not wish to kill [the victim], but only wanted to ‘hurt him.’"
