Ethiopian refugee Solomon Hailu Jenbare has been sentenced to a minimum five years in jail for the manslaughter of his young wife Wubanchi Asfaw, who he stabbed to death at their Auburn unit in April 2014.

Jenbare, 52, was tried for murder but a jury found him guilty of the lesser charge of manslaughter due to "substantial impairment" caused by post-traumatic stress disorder, which stemmed from torture he experienced and witnessed in Ethiopia.

In the Supreme Court in Sydney, Justice Lucy McCallum laid out how the man who "loved his wife and was deeply committed to his child [a daughter]" had become a killer.

The family of Wubanchi Asfaw say their daughter did not deserve to die the way she did. ( ABC News: File photo )

She said the couple, who had married in Ethiopia, had no history of violence but had argued over providing financial support to their relatives.

The court heard the knife attack happened after Ms Asfaw told her husband she wanted to enter into a fake marriage to help a nephew get to Australia.

Justice McCallum found he had stabbed his wife intentionally and had acted "emotionally impulsively and aggressively".

He inflicted eight wounds on her, three serious, from which she bled to death.

However, Justice McCallum accepted the attack was not premeditated and that Jenbare, "was not thinking much at all, rather, acting instinctively".

When police arrived at the scene in Lakemba in Sydney's south-west in April 2014, Jenbare said "I'm the person you're looking for" then raised his hands in the air.

Husband survived torture in Ethiopia, court hears

In sentencing him, Justice McCallum took into account the trauma Jenbare had survived as a political prisoner in Ethiopia and in refugee camps.

Wubanchi Asfaw's brother Tsegaye Yohanes Asfaw, distraught outside court after the verdict. ( AAP: Joel Carrett )

The court heard he had permanent injuries to his hands and feet and post-traumatic stress disorder, from being tortured and witnessing torture and death.

Justice McCallum said his "mental impairment and ongoing pain would make incarceration harsher", and affect his chances of rehabilitation.

"I am satisfied he is truly remorseful," she said as Jenbare wiped away tears.

"His good character belies any intention to kill her."

Justice McCallum also pointed to the seriousness of the offence and the fact that Ms Asfaw had suffered "considerable brutality and died in immense pain and fear".

"Her death has caused immense pain and grief within her family and beyond."

The victim's mother, Asnaku Kebede Eshete, surrounded by relatives and supporters, clutched a photograph of her daughter and sobbed during the sentencing.

Justice McCallum paid respect to them, acknowledging their grief and sadness.

They wailed, and called out "not fair" as Jenbare was sentenced to nine years in prison with a non-parole period of five years.

They continued to display their anger and grief for some time outside the court complex.

Supporter Meskeren Tesfaye said the sentencing decision was disappointing.

"In my opinion I thought he would be life in prison, that's what I was thinking. Five year, three year, that's a joke," she said.

She said the killing continued to affect the victim's mother deeply.

"She never stopped crying the last two years since she came to Australia the last two years, she never stopped crying," she said.

With time already served Jenbare will be eligible for release on parole in April 2019.