Three Burbank men plead not guilty in stabbing at Santa Monica Pier
Three Burbank men pleaded not guilty this week to charges that they were involved in the double stabbing of two fishermen at the Santa Monica Pier, authorities said.
One man, Araik Ovoian, 24, pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to two counts of attempted murder, said Ricardo Santiago, spokesman for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office.
The other two, Gevork Bagdasaryan, 19, and Alex Akbari, 18, each pleaded not guilty to one count of attempted murder and one count of assault with a deadly weapon.
The district attorney declined to file charges against a 21-year-old Glendale woman, Agavni Manukyan, who was initially arrested in connection with the crime, Santiago said.
A 16-year-old male, who was not identified because he’s a minor, was also charged with two counts of attempted murder and is due in court next month.
Witnesses reported seeing the suspects arguing with two fishermen, who were 43 and 30 years old, on the fishing deck at the far west end of the pier around 1:20 a.m. last Saturday, said Santa Monica Police Sgt. Jay Moroso.
The victims, identified as Gilberto Dorado and Antonio Castillo, were both transported to a local trauma center and were expected to survive.
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