Details of crime ring revealed

Darleene Barrientos

Police are asking the public’s help in finding a man they say was

part of an organized crime ring that tried to have as many as eight

people killed.

Edgar Hatamian, 21, is the last suspect at large after police

arrested four men and a juvenile in connection with the ring,

Glendale Police Chief Randy Adams said at a news conference Thursday.

Gagik Galoyan, 53, Gayk Tadevosyan, 38, and Andranik Safaryan, 24,

of Glendale, and Edvard Gyulnazaryan of Burbank were arrested March

20 on suspicion of soliciting to commit murder. The arrests were the

result of a two-year investigation by Glendale Police detectives

working with investigators from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s

major crimes bureau, the Los Angeles division of the FBI and the

National Insurance Crime Bureau. The men were being held Thursday

night, with bail ranging in amounts from $1 million to $9.5 million.

The group is charged with ordering the murders of as many as eight

people, Adams said. None of the eight was killed.

Gyulnazaryan and Galoyan were also engaged in credit card, check

and insurance fraud, he said.

“If we hadn’t taken action when we took to take them into

custody,” Adams said, “it’s very possible these murders would have

gone through.”

Gyulnazaryan and Galoyan allegedly committed the crimes out of a

business in Glendale. Lt. Gary Montecuollo, who headed up the

investigation, said at the news conference he wouldn’t identify the

business, as the investigation was ongoing.

Glendale Police moved in to arrest the men when they discovered a

contract had been taken out on two men serving sentences for

unrelated crimes at the Los Angeles County Central Jail, Adams said.

Gyulnazaryan contacted Hatamian to coordinate the attack, Adams said.

Hatamian contacted a known gang member serving a six-month sentence,

Adams said, and he, Gyulnazaryan and Safaryan went as far as visiting

the gang member in jail and making a down payment on the hits.

Glendale Police are asking for two Long Beach residents to come

forward in relation to the case, Montecuollo said. Gyulnazaryan

allegedly also ordered the murder of the Long Beach residents, and

detectives want to question them.

“We believe they know they were targets,” Montecuollo said.

Hatamian is described as Armenian, 6 feet, 195 pounds, with brown

hair, brown eyes and a close-shaven head. He has a mustache and heavy

facial hair growth. He is considered armed and dangerous, Adams said.

People with information can call the Glendale Police Department at

548-4840. Anonymous calls can be made to Crime Stoppers at 507-7867.