SAN FERNANDO (CNS) — A 21-year-old man accused of being involved in an illegal street race that led to a crash in Chatsworth that killed two people and left another injured was charged with two counts of murder and one count of engaging in a motor vehicle speed contest.
Henry Michael Gevorgyan pleaded not guilty in a San Fernando courtroom on Tuesday, March 3, in connection with the deaths of Eric Siguenza, 26, of Los Angeles, and Wilson Thomas Wong, 50, of Torrance.
A third person was seriously injured in the crash, which occurred about 2:05 p.m. on Feb. 26 in the 21400 block of Plummer Street, near Canoga Avenue.
Gevorgyan is due back in court March 11, when a date will be set for a hearing to determine if there is enough evidence for him to stand trial. He is being held on roughly $2 million bail.
Authorities allege Gevorgyan was behind the wheel of a Mustang, which had been modified for illegal racing and which was abandoned at the scene. The Mustang was one of two cars racing westbound on Plummer Street when the vehicle crashed into the victims, who were among an estimated 60 people watching the cars race, police said.
Video broadcast by ABC7 showed a Ford Mustang racing another car before it veered to the right and crashed.
Gevorgyan — who had been sought by Los Angeles police — turned himself in at the Los Angeles Police Department’s Central Station at 6:55 p.m. on Feb. 28, department officials said.
Gevorgyan’s attorney, Kate Hardie, told the Los Angeles Times her client was not driving the Mustang.
The defense lawyer told the newspaper that video shows him standing on the street between the two vehicles at the starting line.
If convicted as charged, Gevorgyan could face up to 33 years to life in state prison, according to the District Attorney’s Office.