Police have executed a warrant at a semi-rural property believed to be linked to the mistaken kidnapping of grandfather Chris Baghsarian.
The 85-year-old man has been held captive since three men bundled him into a dark-coloured SUV outside his Sydney home just before dawn last Friday.
Detectives believe the widower, who they say is a victim of mistaken identity, is still alive after videos of him emerged restrained in an unknown location.
Police swarmed a property in Dural, about 36km north-west of Sydney, on Thursday night, after identifying it as a location used as a makeshift stronghold by the kidnappers.
A crime scene at the property has been established.
Mr Baghsarian’s family spoke publicly for the first time earlier this week, describing the kidnapping as a surreal and harrowing ordeal.
‘Our family is living through a nightmare we never thought possible,’ they said in a brief statement released via police.
Mr Baghsarian’s lack of personal links to any criminal or underworld activity is making the case difficult for investigators.
Chris Baghsarian was kidnapped from his home in Sydney in a case of mistaken identity
Sickening footage of the grandfather being tortured has been circulating through Sydney’s underworld
No ransom has been demanded, leaving police to appeal directly to the kidnappers to return the grandfather to a safe location.
‘It’s not an instance where they’re randomly taking people for the sake of it,’ Detective Superintendent Andrew Marks told reporters on Monday.
‘They were intending to take somebody but have taken the wrong person.’
Police are continuing to appeal for public assistance to help identify and arrest those responsible for his kidnapping.
Sickening footage of the grandfather being tortured has been circulating through Sydney’s underworld.
The footage shows him bloodied, tied up and gagged on a carpeted floor stained with blood, while images also allegedly reveal one of his fingers has been severed.
