On what would have been his wedding weekend, family members of slain Chattanooga man gather at his burial site

Clad in a wedding dress, Sara Baluch, center, mourns with her father Masoud Baluch, left, and her fiance's father Mohssen Sharifi while visiting the grave of her fiance, Mohammad Sharifi, on Sunday, March 10, 2019, the day after they were supposed to be married, at Harpeth Hills Memory Gardens in Nashville, Tenn. Sharifi, a UTC student, was shot and killed two weeks before their wedding by a man to whom he was trying to sell an Xbox. Clad in a wedding dress, Sara Baluch, center, mourns with her father Masoud Baluch, left, and her fiance's father Mohssen Sharifi while visiting the grave of her fiance, Mohammad Sharifi, on Sunday, March 10, 2019, the day after they were supposed to be married, at Harpeth Hills Memory Gardens in Nashville, Tenn. Sharifi, a UTC student, was shot and killed two weeks before their wedding by a man to whom he was trying to sell an Xbox.

By Rosana Hughes March 10, 2019 8 min read

NASHVILLE – Saturday was going to be their wedding day. But instead of getting ready for her nuptials, Sara Baluch was planning a visit to her fiancé’s grave.

Mohammad Sharifi, 24, was shot and killed in the parking lot of a Hixson Pike apartment complex while trying to sell his Xbox One gaming system on Feb. 19, just over two weeks before the wedding, police say. D’Marcus White, 20, has been charged with criminal homicide.

Up until Friday evening, 22-year-old Baluch remained steadfast in her plan to visit Sharifi’s grave at Harpeth Hills Memory Gardens in the outskirts of Nashville. But the promise of thunderstorms forced her to postpone the visit until the next day.

The Times Free Press was given permission to attend the small gathering.

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Family mourns loss of Mohammad Sharifi

Clad in a wedding dress, Sara Baluch mourns while visiting the grave of her fiance, Mohammad Sharifi, on Sunday, March 10, 2019, the day after they were supposed to be married, at Harpeth Hills Memory Gardens in Nashville, Tenn. Sharifi, a UTC student, was shot and killed two weeks before their wedding by a man to whom he was trying to sell an Xbox.

Sara Baluch talks about her fiance, Mohammad Sharifi, in her dorm room on the campus of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga on Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2019, in Chattanooga, Tenn. Sharifi, a UTC student, was shot and killed two weeks before their wedding by a man to whom he was trying to sell an Xbox.

Sara Baluch touches a photograph while visiting the grave of her fiance, Mohammad Sharifi, on Sunday, March 10, 2019, the day after they were supposed to be married, at Harpeth Hills Memory Gardens in Nashville, Tenn. Sharifi, a UTC student, was shot and killed two weeks before their wedding by a man to whom he was trying to sell an Xbox.

A photograph of Mohammad Sharifi and his fiance Sara Baluch is displayed in her dorm room with a wedding favor on the campus of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga on Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2019, in Chattanooga, Tenn. Sharifi, a UTC student, was shot and killed two weeks before their wedding by a man to whom he was trying to sell an Xbox. Baluch buried him with one of the favors.

Family members mourn at the grave of Mohammad Sharifi on Sunday, March 10, 2019, at Harpeth Hills Memory Gardens in Nashville, Tenn. Sharifi, a UTC student, was shot and killed two weeks before their wedding by a man to whom he was trying to sell an Xbox.

Sara Baluch poses for a portrait with a picture of her fiance, Mohammad Sharifi, in her dorm room on the campus of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga on Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2019, in Chattanooga, Tenn. Sharifi, a UTC student, was shot and killed two weeks before their wedding by a man to whom he was trying to sell an Xbox.

Sona Baluch, left, places a black veil on the head of Sara Baluch as she mourns with Michelle Sharifi, right, while visiting the grave of Sara's fiance, Mohammad Sharifi, on Sunday, March 10, 2019, the day after they were supposed to be married, at Harpeth Hills Memory Gardens in Nashville, Tenn. Sharifi, a UTC student, was shot and killed two weeks before their wedding by a man to whom he was trying to sell an Xbox.

A photograph of Mohammad Sharifi and his fiance Sara Baluch is displayed in her dorm room on the campus of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga on Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2019, in Chattanooga, Tenn. Sharifi, a UTC student, was shot and killed two weeks before their wedding by a man to whom he was trying to sell an Xbox.

Sara Baluch, left, mourns with Lilly Sharifi while visiting the grave of Baluch's fiance, Mohammad Sharifi, on Sunday, March 10, 2019, the day after they were supposed to be married, at Harpeth Hills Memory Gardens in Nashville, Tenn. Sharifi, a UTC student, was shot and killed two weeks before their wedding by a man to whom he was trying to sell an Xbox.

So when Sunday came, she put on her ivory chiffon wedding dress and a white tulle veil fastened by a pearl hair piece.