Suspect Named in Fatal Hit-and-Run

Los Angeles police have identified Shahen Keshishian, a Glendale long-distance truck driver, as a suspect in connection with the April 29 death of a Canoga Park documentary filmmaker.

Detectives in the LAPD’s North Hollywood Division said Thursday it took them several weeks to identify the driver of a black sport utility vehicle that allegedly ran down Michael Craven, said North Hollywood Homicide Det. Mike Coffey.

The incident occurred as Craven was driving his Jeep south on the Hollywood Freeway near Barham Boulevard when a man in a new black Chevrolet Suburban began throwing eggs at his vehicle.

Craven, 44, cut in front of the SUV, causing it to stop, police said. He then got out and started walking toward the Suburban when its driver allegedly accelerated, running Craven down before speeding away, authorities said.

Craven died later at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in West Hollywood.

An intense police search began as detectives set out to find the owners of new black Suburbans purchased at San Fernando Valley car dealerships. Detectives narrowed the number of buyers to about a half-dozen in the Glendale area, Coffey said.

“We found all of the new buyers, except for one,” he said. “One of the dealers told us a person had purchased a black Suburban with a fraudulent identification. That made us suspicious.”

Glendale police, making an arrest of a parolee in an unrelated case about three weeks ago, spotted a parked black Suburban that matched a description given by Los Angeles police, Coffey said.

“That was a lucky part in the investigation,” he said.

Detectives found that the vehicle had been sold three times. Current owners eventually led police to Keshishian, who is 28, in Glendale.

During a search, police found traces of eggshells and denim fabric on the front of the Suburban, Coffey said.

“And we know [Craven] was wearing jeans,” Coffey said. “It appears as if [Keshishian] was trying to get rid of the car.”

Through relatives, detectives learned that Keshishian has been out of town on a driving job.

His attorney, Fred Minassian, told authorities that he was trying to arrange a surrender, Coffey said.

“He knows we are looking for him,” he said. “But that event [the surrender] has not come about yet.”

Minassian did not return phone calls from The Times on Thursday.

Craven’s ex-wife, Kathleen Barich, said her family has been trying to cope with Craven’s death one day at a time and hopes the person responsible tells police what happened that night.

“It has been a roller coaster in the past few weeks, knowing someone has been identified and not having a person in custody,” Barich said. “We want to see this person do the right thing.”

Barich was ironing her oldest son’s graduation gown when she received a call from police telling her they had identified a suspect. She said she realized she had to be strong for her sons.

“Nothing is going to bring him back,” she said. “But that’s our reality. We have to face it every day and go on with our lives.”