SALT LAKE CITY (TCD) — A 40-year-old man was convicted last week of killing an 18-year-old and holding multiple people hostage after partygoers stole a bottle of alcohol from the man’s home.
On Friday, Oct. 27, a jury found Levon Meguerditchian guilty of first-degree murder, several counts of aggravated kidnapping, obstructing justice, and felony discharge of a firearm.
The fatal incident occurred Aug. 28, 2021, at a party Meguerditchian hosted at his home in Salt Lake City’s Sugar House neighborhood. In the early hours of the morning, some attendees grabbed a bottle of alcohol and ran out of his home. The victim, 18-year-old Abdourazak Mouhoumed, reportedly left the home at the same time and drove off.
The Salt Lake County district attorney’s office said Meguerditchian shot at Mouhoumed and struck him in the head. As a result, Mouhoumed crashed his car.
According to KUTV-TV, Mouhoumed’s car rammed into two homes, but the residents reportedly were not aware of the crash. Mouhoumed died at the scene.
Meguerditchian reportedly forced everyone else at the party to move into the laundry room and threatened them with violence. Salt Lake City Police arrived at the scene to search for signs of the shooting but did not find any evidence. Some of the hostages were reportedly freed after that.
At approximately 6:30 a.m., one of the hostage’s friends contacted the Salt Lake City Police Department and said their friend was still being held against her will at Meguerditchian’s home. Officers went to the residence and found a juvenile female with “multiple injuries to her face.”
Meguerditchian reportedly surmised that girl was friends with the people who took the alcohol and invited them to the party.
He will be sentenced Jan. 10, 2024.
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