Los Angeles: On Sunday, May 17, 2009, a 31-year-old female met with a group of friends at the Ecco Ultra Lounge in Hollywood, located at 1640 Cahuenga Boulevard. She had taken a taxi cab to the club. At 2 a.m., another cab, driven by Armen Ayvazian, was summoned to the club and took the victim to her residence. When she opened her front door, Ayvazian entered and followed her inside where he sexually assaulted her. The suspect then fled the location after the assault.
Detectives assigned to the Special Assault Section of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Robbery-Homicide Division conducted a lengthy investigation and worked closely with the City’s Taxicab Regulation Division and Department of Transportation, as well as the LAPD’s Fugitive Warrant Section to identify and arrest Ayvazian. On June 3, 2009, detectives arrested Ayvazian at his residence in North Hills, California, where he was taken into custody without incident. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office filed several charges of felony sexual assault and possession of an assault weapon against Ayvazian. He remains in custody on $235,000 bail.
The cops think there may be more victims out there. Anyone with information is asked to contact Robbery-Homicide Division Detective Al Contreras or Lieutenant Felicia Hall at 213-485-2921
While the cards have notably been available to neighbors in immigrant communities and for the use of undocumented individuals in the U.S., the Immigrant Legal Resource Center suggests that everyone should carry one, regardless of their immigration status.
UNITE HERE Local 11 and Legends Global settle on an agreement that provides stadium workers with higher pay, subcontracting protection, and the right to strike if threatened by ICE officials.
Growing up in an old, beaten-up apartment complex near Disneyland, I came of age in an environment that demonized queerness. Not only through verbal reprimands, machismo, and shaming, but also through violent means.
What started with an April Fool’s Day joke has now become a reality. Every month, L.A. TACO will feature a story about the Inland Empire as part of our new and official IE TACO section.
Welcome to year two of the ICE Siege of L.A. Yes, it’s still happening, and we’re still on it. Let’s get into the raids, an update on the Hunger strikes, and unfortunately, another death in ICE detention.
“I went to Amsterdam, and I saw the combination of the coffee shops and the smoke shops, and I was like, ‘We need something like that here in Cali,’” Nardo tells L.A. TACO.