Australian police on Monday urged the kidnappers of an 85-year-old man to release him, saying they are convinced he was abducted in a case of mistaken identity.
Chris Baghsarian was kidnapped three days ago after intruders broke into his home in North Ryde, a suburb of Sydney. He attempted to resist before being forced into a vehicle.
85-year-old man abducted from his home in Sydney
The abduction took place around 5 a.m. Security camera footage aired by local media shows an SUV driving outside Baghsarian’s home early Friday. Two masked men are later seen entering the house and emerging with the elderly man, who appears to struggle as they force him into the vehicle.
According to reports, the vehicle used in the escape was set on fire shortly afterward. Videos and images later circulated in Sydney’s criminal underworld allegedly show Baghsarian in an undisclosed location, appearing to suffer from severe bruising after fighting back against his captors.
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported that the kidnappers were searching for "a figure with links to the Alameddine crime family", which operates in Sydney. Police stressed that Baghsarian has no involvement whatsoever in criminal activity.
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The 85-year-old kidnapping victim; struggled with his attackers, was injured and forced into a vehicle
(Photo: New South Wales Police)
Andrew Marks, Serious Crime Commander, said he was “one million per cent confident that they have the wrong person."
Australian media reported that the intended target of the three attackers may have lived on the same street as Baghsarian.
In what he described as a “very strange” appeal, Marks urged the kidnappers to release the elderly man immediately. New South Wales Premier also called for Baghsarian’s release, telling the abductors to inform police of his location or leave him outside a shopping center, hospital or even a nursing home as soon as possible.
Baghsarian lives alone and was taken from his home wearing pajamas. His family fears for his well-being and said he requires daily medication.
The family is distraught. All they want is to be reunited with their father and grandfather, police said.
Marks said he had viewed the footage showing Baghsarian injured. It is disturbing to see an 85-year-old man in that condition, he said. The fact that these offenders made such a mistake is very troubling. But those with elderly parents or grandparents should not be fearful, he added.
The BBC noted that "cases of mistaken identity have become increasingly common in Sydney's underworld, as large organised crime networks increasingly subcontract crimes. Last year a 23-year-old plumber was shot dead in what police believe was also a case of mistaken identity."
Meanwhile, in the U.S., investigators are continuing to probe the kidnapping of 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie, the mother of NBC “Today” show anchor Savannah Guthrie.
Authorities said over the weekend that DNA not belonging to Guthrie or her relatives was found at her Arizona home, raising the possibility it belongs to the kidnapper.
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Nancy Guthrie and the kidnapper filmed at the entrance to her Arizona home
(Photo: FBI)
Last week, video was released showing a masked suspect armed with a handgun at the entrance to Guthrie’s Tucson home, attempting to disable a security camera. Sixteen gloves were later found in a field about 3 kilometers from the house.
The FBI said the vast majority of the gloves belonged to investigators and search teams who had discarded them during the operation. In the latest update, officials said one glove matched the type worn by the suspect in the footage and that a DNA sample had been taken from it, in hopes of identifying the kidnapper more than two weeks after the abduction that has gripped the U.S.