The murder of Christopher “Chris” Shahnazari by Vrej Zadurian is spotlighted in the latest episode of The Shadows Of Death on Investigation Discovery.
When Shahnazari arrived at the home he shared with his family in Glendale, California, on Bruce Street on November 1, 2005, the 20-year-old encountered three or four intruders who had blindfolded and beaten his mother.
Shahnazar told the intruders his family didn’t have any money to give them before he hugged his mother and gave her a kiss on the cheek. He told her he loved her and that he wouldn’t let anything happen to her.
The men then dragged Shahnazar to another room and brutally beat him. It was during that time that his mother was able to escape. As she was running out of the house, she heard a gunshot.
Shahnazar was shot in the chest. He was later pronounced dead at a local hospital.
Police officials arrested a man named Edmond Ovasapyan, after Shahnazar’s mother told them that he looked like the man who broke into their house.
Eight months later, Ovasapyan was cleared of the charges when DNA evidence collected at the crime scene determined he wasn’t the perpetrator.
Ovasapyan later sued the city and two Glendale police detectives for violating his civil rights—he was awarded $1.3 million.
Zadurian was arrested in 2008 after DNA evidence linked him to the shooting. At the time he was already incarcerated for committing another crime.
He was charged with first-degree murder and robbery.
In 2013, a jury found him guilty of killing Shahnazar, and he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The following year, Zadurian appealed his conviction, but he was denied.
Police officials have yet to find the other men involved in the incident.
The Shadows Of Death — The Oath, airs at 9/8c on Investigation Discovery.