Agoura Road body identified




DISCOVERY–Sheriff’s deputies block Agoura Road at Vendell Road following the discovery of a deceased male at the Liberty Canyon location on Sept. 24. He was stabbed to death, the coroner says.    SYLVIE BELMOND/Acorn Newspapers

The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner has identified the body of a man found on Agoura Road on Sept. 24. Investigators announced that 58-year-old Vrezh Bazikyan of Glendale died of stab wounds to the neck.

Bazikyan’s body was discovered lying 15 yards into the brush on Agoura Road just west of the Liberty Canyon overpass.

The body was discovered by a city landscaper in the early afternoon hours. Investigators closed the road until 10 p.m. the night of the 24th. Bazikyan was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics from the LA County Fire Department.

For some residents, the news of a dead body found in a patch of brush brought back memories of the summer of 2018, when two dead bodies were discovered in the Malibu Canyon area, and Irvine resident Tristan Beaudette was shot dead while camping at Malibu Creek State Park. The bodies were later attributed to the activity of Los Angeles gang members but Beaudette’s murder sparked months of fear and speculation about a lone gunman who roamed the Santa Monica Mountains.

A string of late-night burglaries furthered that fear, especially after locals learned the culprit only took food. The LA County Sheriff’s Department conducted several manhunts in the hills over the summer which culminated in the arrest of Anthony Rauda, 43, on Oct. 10. Rauda was found with a rifle at the time of his arrest and was later determined to have been living in the hills for some time.

Some residents questioned whether he was the man responsible for the killing Beaudette, the burglaries, and other reports of gunfire in the region dating back at least two years, but reports of additional crime decreased after his arrest. It should be noted that at no time during that period was anyone threatened with a knife, nor were there any reports of knife attacks in the area. Rauda is in jail awaiting trial.