[ 2009/06/28 | 01:27 ]
Body of Slain American-Armenian Businessman Flown back to Los Angeles;
Further DNA Tests Scheduled
The body of Nazareth Hagop Berberian, the Armenian-American
businessman who was turned up missing on April 25th and whose body was
found murdered on May 15th has been returned to Los Angeles today.
The body was received at LAX by the Los Angeles County Coroner’s
office where a second and much more detailed autopsy will be conducted
to determine the actual cause of death, all injuries inflicted, traces
of poisoning and the approximate date of Berberian’s murder.
A second DNA test will also be conducted. The results of the first
test that reportedly determined Berberian’s identity was inaccurate
since it showed traces of DNA belonging to someone other than
Berberian.
According to Ara Manoogian, the Berberians’ legal representative in
Armenia, `the police claims of the date, method, place and motives of
the murder do not add up.’ Manoogian who has personally examined the
body further added: ‘The body was clearly tortured prior to being
murdered, and the murder probably took place outside of Nazareth’s
home in the first or second week of May. These observations are based
on the initital information provided by the Armenian police, the
condition of the body when I examined it, the weather conditions at
the location where the body was found, the way it was buried and the
method of storage chosen by the morgue in Yerevan prior to my initial
examination of the body.’
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is awaiting the findings of the
Los Angeles County Coroner’s office. If it turns out that their
findings do not match with those provided by the Armenian Authorities,
appropriate measures will be implemented to launch an investigation
with the purpose of revealing all the facts pertaining to the case,
finding all those responsible for Berberian’s murder and bringing them
to justice.
`Though we can’t bring Nazreth back if, in fact, this turns out to be
his body, we sure can and have to work hard to make sure that those
who committed this heinous crime don’t get away with it. But if they
do, then no Diaspora Armenian doing business in Armenia has a better
chance to avoid the same fate,’ said Manoogian.