Police suspect human remains belong to kidnapped man Chris Baghsarian

Tuesday 24 February

NSW Police have been investigating what they say is the mistaken kidnapping of Chris Baghsarian. (Supplied: NSW Police)

In short:

Human remains have been found in the search for abducted grandfather Chris Baghsarian.

The suspected remains of the 85-year-old, who police say was mistakenly kidnapped, were found near a golf club in Pitt Town in Sydney’s north-west.

What’s next?

The hunt for Mr Baghsarian’s kidnappers continues.

Police suspect the human remains found near a golf club in Sydney’s north-west belong to kidnapped grandfather Chris Baghsarian.

Mr Baghsarian was snatched from his North Ryde property and bundled into an SUV about 5am on February 13, with investigators confident the 85-year-old was not the intended target of the abduction plot.

The Pitt Town scene were suspected human remains have been found. (ABC News)

The ABC understands police believe the kidnappers’ intended target was a relative of Sydney businessman Dimitri Stepanyan, who lives in the North Ryde area.

Mr Stepanyan is a convicted armed robber with alleged links to the Alameddine crime family, who police believe control the city’s drug trade.

Police sources have told the ABC they are investigating whether the people responsible for Mr Baghsarian’s capture sent messages to Mr Stepanyan demanding $50 million for his release.

Messages seen by the ABC show the kidnappers learned they had taken the wrong person during this exchange.

Detectives have said that Mr Baghsarian’s family never received any demand for ransom or communication from his captors.

Following extensive inquiries, detectives located what is believed to be human remains near a golf club in Pitt Town in the north-west fringes of Sydney about 8am on Tuesday.

There is a considerable police presence in Pitt Town. (ABC News)

The State Crime Command’s Robbery and Serious Crime Squad led a coordinated response to recover the man under Strike Force Chobat.

Police had been scouring dense bushland in the search for the abducted grandfather, with officers on Monday seen near a national park and bushland in Glenorie, approximately 19 kilometres away from Pitt Town.

Suspected remains have been found in Pitt Town

Detective Acting Superintendent Andrew Marks said police suspected the remains to belong to Mr Baghsarian but the remains “aren’t able to be positively identified”.

A formal process, including forensic examination, will be undertaken to identify the remains.

Tragic timeline

More than a week after the 85-year-old’s abduction, a property in Dural was discovered and linked to his captors.

North of that in Glenorie, officers scoured dense bushland in response to sightings of a grey Toyota Corolla, which was later set alight.

In the boot of the car, which police allege was stolen, officers found a blood-stained carpet believed to have come from the abandoned Dural property.

NSW SES personnel assisted police in the search for Mr Baghsarian on Sunday. (ABC News: Ethan Rix)

“We’re aware that the vehicle … was in that vicinity [Pitt Town] at 9:05pm on Saturday, 14th of February,” Superintendent Marks said, which is when police believe Mr Baghsarian’s body was put there.

He said it was “very near” the golf club, and was then identified as being near Westmead “some time later on that night and was burnt out” on Monday, February 16.

The chief inspector said police were investigating whether the car was driven out to Glenorie and Pitt Town on the same night.

Shortly after his abduction, images and video circulated of Mr Baghsarian tied up and being assaulted.

That footage showed the Dural property as being consistent with where the man was kept, police said.

CCTV footage had captured movement on the North Ryde street in the moments before and after the grandfather was snatched on February 13.

Detectives had repeatedly appealed directly to the kidnappers for Mr Baghsarian’s safe return, saying he required daily medication.

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CCTV captures movement in the street before Chris Baghsarian was abducted.

Superintendent Marks said police could forensically link the vehicle to Mr Baghsarian and to the “stronghold” in Dural.

“Putting that together is why we believe it [the human remains] are Mr Baghsarian,” he said.

The hunt for his kidnappers continues.

“We’re all outraged this would happen to an innocent man … [and] we will continue to investigate to identify those responsible and bring them before the courts,” Superintendent Marks said.

‘Deeply loved’

Superintendent Marks said Mr Baghsarian’s family were “deeply upset” and had requested privacy at this time.

His relatives had previously described the kidnapping as “surreal”.

“Our family is living through a nightmare we never thought possible,” the family said in a statement last week.

“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.

“Chris is a devoted father, brother, uncle, and grandfather. He is deeply loved, gentle, and the kindest person we know — someone who would never hurt a fly.”

Neighbours have left flowers at Mr Baghsarian’s home in North Ryde where he was kidnapped.

“I am lost for words what a cruel world we live in,” one tribute read.

“Please know all of Australia is praying for you and your family, I’m sorry we let you down,” another stated.

NSW Premier Chris Minns described the discovery as a “incredibly tragic development”.

“This kind of brutality has no place in our community,” he said.

“The full weight of the law must come down on these people.”