Updated ,first published
Evidence has been found at a “stronghold” used by kidnappers to hold an elderly man hostage in Sydney’s north-west that matches images circulated throughout Sydney’s underworld showing the 85-year-old being tortured, as police admit hope of finding him alive is fading.
Chris Baghsarian, 85, has been held hostage since February 13, when up to three men abducted him from his North Ryde home about 5am in a suspected case of mistaken identity.
Police have issued several direct pleas to the kidnappers to return Baghsarian, who requires daily medical treatment and medication, but have not been able to locate the 85-year-old or his kidnappers.
On Thursday night, detectives working under Strike Force Chobat searched a property at Dural, north-west Sydney, that they believe Baghsarian’s kidnappers had used as a “makeshift stronghold”. Baghsarian was not found at the Wildthorn Avenue property, which has been declared a crime scene, but police believe he was held their for “some time” in the past seven days.
Detective Acting Superintendent Andrew Marks, the acting commander of the robbery and serious crime squad, said evidence had been found inside the Dural home that was consistent with “distressing” video and images of a severely injured Baghsarian circulated throughout the criminal underworld shortly after his kidnapping.
Baghsarian is pictured in the images wearing the flannelette shirt and grey tracksuit pants he was wearing when he was taken. Marks did not disclose what was found in the property, but police were seen on Friday morning removing large evidence bags from the home, which is believed to have been abandoned for several years.
Investigators had followed a “trail of evidence that we believe identifies or implicates people that may be involved”, Marks said. Police are scouring both the interior and exterior of the home, and the wider Dural area. No one was at the home when police arrived, and Marks said it was unclear when the kidnappers had left the property, or why.
“I don’t know why they have left there. I don’t know why Mr Baghsarian is not there,” Marks said.
“We’re hopeful that we can gain more evidence to identify those responsible, and also gain some information as to the location of Mr Baghsarian.”
Police have not publicly identified who they believe Baghsarian’s captors intended to kidnap, but are investigating whether the abduction is linked to an associate of the Alameddine crime network whose family lives on the same street as the 85-year-old.
In a statement issued through NSW Police on Tuesday, Baghsarian’s family said it was “living through a nightmare we never thought possible”.
“Chris’ kidnapping feels surreal, and we are struggling to make sense of the fact that he has been taken and that our family has been caught up in something that has nothing to do with us,” they said.
Baghsarian’s family said he was deeply loved and a devoted father, brother, uncle and grandfather.
“The kindest person we know – someone who would never hurt a fly,” they said.
Messages, purportedly between Baghsarian’s captors and the intended target of the abduction and published by SCN Worldstar, an independent media channel focused on Sydney’s underworld, appear to show ransom demands being made.
Marks said no ransom demands had been made to Baghsarian’s family, who had not been in contact with the kidnappers. Police have repeatedly said neither Baghsarian, a widower who lived alone, nor his family is linked to organised crime and believe he was kidnapped mistakenly. Detectives spoke with Baghsarian’s family on Thursday, Marks said.
“This is not their world that they live in. It’s taken them by shock. They’re anxious. They’re devastated, and they want some answers,” Marks said.
Police are appealing for members of the public who may have seen suspicious activity in Dural, or have dashcam filmed in the area to contact authorities.
Amber Schultz is a crime and justice reporter with The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via X or email.