2 Arrested In Alleged Kidnapping That Led To Officer-Involved Shooting In Burbank

BURBANK (CBSLA.com) — Detectives are sort out the details of an alleged kidnapping out of South Los Angeles that ended in an officer-involved shooting in Burbank.

A 36-year-old woman called police at 4:10 a.m. to the 99 Cent Store, 2407 W. Victory Blvd., to report she had been kidnapped and gave officers a "very specific description" of the suspect, Burbank police spokesman Sgt. Claudio Losacco said.

A short time later, an officer in the field spotted a pickup truck that matched the description driving westbound on Victory Boulevard at Buena Vista and tried to pull it over, prompting the suspect to flee at a high rate of speed and run red lights, Losacco said. When truck stopped at Victory and Pass and backed up into a patrol car, officers opened fire, he said.

The driver, 21-year-old Arthur Papiyan, was struck in the back by one round, which had gone through the driver seat and lost enough momentum that it did not penetrate Papiyan's skin. Papiyan was treated at a local hospital and booked on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer. His bail was set at $50,000 and he is scheduled to make his first court appearance Monday.

Neither of the officers were hurt.

The woman told investigators she had left a house party in South Los Angeles on foot when a man drove up next to her and offered her a ride, which she accepted, Losacco said. They got on the freeway, but the woman told police the driver did not get off at the correct exit, instead putting a rag over her face. She told detectives she woke up outside of the truck, near railroad tracks, then walked to the 99 Cent Store, where she called police.

Losacco said detectives have not been able to verify the account, so Papiyan is not being booked for kidnapping at this time. The woman, who was arrested for two outstanding misdemeanor prostitution warrants, is now being uncooperative with investigators, Losacco said.