Lynn News, UK
Oct 15 2005

Murder victim was murder suspect

A man who was shot and stabbed at a Lynn factory before his body was
doused with petrol and set alight belonged to the mafia and was
suspected of a murder in Belgium, a court heard this week.
Hovanhannes Amirian had been butchered in the medical room at Cooper
Roller Bearings factory in Wisbech Road, South Lynn.

His burning body was found dumped in a field in Upton, near
Peterborough, and it took detectives almost a year to identify him.

A former security officer at the factory, Nishan Bakunts (28), and
his father-in-law, Misha Chatsjatrjan (44) allegedly killed the
42-year-old Armenian over a “family quarrel”.

Mr Amirian, who was Bakunts’ godfather, had been staying at Bakunts’
Yarmouth home with his partner Arpine Karapetian (24) and their two
children for several months.

The murder is alleged to have happened between December 19 and 20,
2002, while the factory was closing down for Christmas.

Bakunts and Chatsjatrjan then sought to destroy evidence linking them
to the crime, Norwich Crown Court has heard.

A statement read to the jury by the prosecution on Wednesday revealed
that Mr Amirian was wanted for questioning about the murder of
Pogosian Ernait, who was killed on November 30, 2000, at Ostend in
Belgium.

Belgium police suspected Mr Amirian and he was described as “a
self-confessed mafia man”.

Clare Matthews, junior barrister to David Farrell QC, prosecuting,
said: “It was known that he was involved in organised crime”.

The jury also heard from Bakunts’ sister Lucinne Karepetian who said
Chatsjatrjan had confessed to her that he put eight bullets into Mr
Amirian’s head.

She said he told how Mr Amirian had fallen to his knees and pleaded
“don’t kill me, I have children”.

On Tuesday, the court heard from Vanessa Armstrong, who is a
secretary at Coopers. She had recognised a scorched piece of memo
found next to Mr Amirian’s burning body.

The memo, containing the names Armstrong and Talbot, turned out to be
a health check appointment addressed to factory employee, Paul
Talbot, which had been left in the medical room at Coopers three days
before the body was found.

Detectives had targeted 2,099 people with those name in a mailshot
between August and September, 2003, and it was a “major breakthrough
in the investigation” when Miss Armstrong contacted police – linking
the murder to Coopers.

She told the court: “I recognised the memo immediately, because it is
something I do fortnightly. It was quite clearly my writing and my
memo.”

She said Mr Talbot had attended the medical room on December 18, and
the factory closed for Christmas on December 20 and didn’t re-open
until the New Year.

The jury heard Bakunts was in charge of security on the night of the
murder, and Miss Armstrong said he would have had keys to the medical
room and showers. Forensic officers discovered traces of Mr Amirian’s
blood on the couch and walls.

Bakunts, of Litchfield Road, Yarmouth, and Chatsjatrjan, of The
Straat, The Netherlands, deny murder.

The trial continues.
14 October 2005

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