Man convicted of kidnapping another

A Costa Mesa man will face life in prison when he’s sentenced in August for kidnapping a Russian man and holding him for a $1-million ransom.

Vagan Adzhemyan, 41, was convicted Monday of conspiracy to commit kidnapping and kidnapping along with his accomplice, Galvin Shaun Gibson, 30, of Mira Loma. The two will be sentenced Aug. 2 in federal court in Santa Ana.

The two men, along with Suren Garibyan, 32, of North Hollywood, kidnapped a Van Nuys man in July at his mother’s apartment complex and held him for ransom. Gibson pleaded guilty last year and is scheduled to be sentenced in federal court Aug. 24.

On July 29, Adzhemyan and Garibyan ambushed their victim and his friend in an underground parking garage at the victim’s mother’s apartment complex. While the two tried to abduct their target, they also beat up the victim’s friend, who accidentally shot the victim in the stomach.

For five days Adzhemyan, Garibyan and Gibson moved their human cargo to several locations around Southern California to avoid detection from authorities.

They were unsuccessful, however, as court documents show that police were monitoring the men to several locations. The men called their victim’s family and friends in Los Angeles and Russia demanding a $1-million ransom.

On the day that the man’s family was supposed to pay the ransom, Los Angeles Police Department SWAT officers stormed Gibson’s home in Mira Loma. They found a pit bull guarding the victim, who was still suffering from his untreated gunshot wound.

Adzhemyan was arrested in Costa Mesa where police said he had been emptying the victim’s bank account by using his ATM card.