Zaira Patino-Trejo’s stepfather attacks her killer, Euren Balbuena, in court

A mourning stepfather attacked his stepdaughter’s killer during his sentencing hearing in California Wednesday, landing one blow before officials broke up the courtroom brawl.

Euren Balbuena, 33, was sentenced to 33 years to life in prison for the 2020 murder of his girlfriend, 31-year-old Zaira Patino-Trejo, Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko announced Thursday.

The Simi Valley killer had stabbed Patino-Trejo to death in front of her mother Ariadna Avetisyan, who was also slashed in the head.

Avetisyan was delivering an emotional victim impact statement, telling the court how Patino-Trejo’s loss affected her family’s lives, when her husband lunged at Balbuena.

The grieving man delivered at least one punch before the two were separated by bailiffs, the Ventura County Star reported.

A handcuffed and bewildered Balbuena was seen in a photo shared by the DA’s office being held back by a court official in the direct aftermath of the attack.

The stepfather was removed from the courtroom. Impact statements continued about an hour later.

As of Thursday afternoon, county sheriff’s officials hadn’t filed a case concerning the incident with the DA’s office, the outlet reported.

Balbuena was convicted in November of the first-degree murder of Patino-Trejo, battery causing great bodily injury, and assault with a deadly weapon against her mother.

The deadly fight erupted in February 2020 when Avetisyan showed up at the couple’s Simi Valley apartment after not hearing from her daughter.

Upon seeing signs of abuse on Patino-Trejo’s face and knowing of Balbuena’s history of domestic violence, the mother desperately tried to leave with her daughter.

The killer blocked their path, slashing Avetisyan twice across the face before attacking her daughter.

He used several knives to stab Patino-Trejo more than 30 times — though prosecutors argued the total was closer to 95.

After watching her daughter die, Avetisyan fled while profusely bleeding and called 911.

“Zaira Patino-Trejo was such a vibrant young woman with a bright future,” Supervising Senior Deputy District Attorney Melissa Suttner said in a statement.

“We cannot replace her unimaginable loss, but we pursued justice for Zaira and her family. We hope that this sentence brings some small relief to her family, knowing that Euren Balbuena was held
accountable for her brutal murder.”