Updated ,first published
Two men have been arrested over the kidnapping and murder of elderly widower Chris Baghsarian, who was abducted from his Sydney home in a suspected case of mistaken identity.
Robbery and serious crime squad detectives working under Strike Force Chobat arrested the men, aged 29 and 24, at properties in Kenthurst and Castle Hill on Wednesday morning. Searches of several properties in Sydney’s north-west are ongoing.
The men are yet to be charged. They have been taken to Riverstone police station and are being interviewed by detectives.
Detectives recovered human remains believed to be those of Baghsarian near a golf course at Pitt Town on Sydney’s north-western fringe on Tuesday morning.
Baghsarian was taken hostage on February 13 when up to three men abducted him from his North Ryde home at about 5am in a suspected case of mistaken identity. Baghsarian, a grandfather and widower born in Jerusalem, lived alone, and police have repeatedly said he and his family have no links to organised crime.
NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon said investigators had been “working around the clock” to identify and locate Baghsarian’s kidnappers.
“Their priority was obviously to have Mr Baghsarian returned to his family safe, but tragically that’s not the case,” Lanyon told 2GB on Wednesday.
“This is an appalling crime. I was very confident we would take action.”
On Sunday afternoon, police launched a large-scale search of dense bushland at Glenorie after receiving reports a Toyota Corolla, since forensically linked to Baghsarian, had been seen in the area at about 9pm on February 14.
Investigators then identified the Pitt Town crime scene, a 15-minute drive away, as the possible location of Baghsarian’s body after the Corolla was spotted in the area. Police believe Baghsarian’s body was dumped near the golf course that night.
Detectives last week searched a Dural property Baghsarian’s kidnappers had used as a “makeshift stronghold” to detain and torture the 85-year-old in the hours after his kidnapping. Evidence found at that property matches video and images of a severely injured Baghsarian circulated throughout Sydney’s criminal underworld.
Evidence found with the remains and in the Corolla, which was set alight in a Westmead street on February 16, matched items found in the Dural home.
Detectives believe the kidnappers were looking for the father of 37-year-old Sydney businessman Dimitri Stepanyan, a convicted armed robber and founder of Proper Streetwear – a well-known clothing brand linked to the Alameddine crime family, – when they mistakenly grabbed Baghsarian.
Proper Streetwear has long been worn by alleged members of the Alameddine network. The phrase “never cross the family” – an alleged reference to the Alameddine family – appears on several Proper Streetwear clothing items and features on some members’ personal jewellery.
The Stepanyan family has lived on the same street as Baghsarian for several years.
This masthead has attempted to contact Stepanyan for comment. He is not accused of any involvement in Baghsarian’s kidnapping.
More to come.
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