Jackson Bell
A Glendale man was sentenced Friday to 16 months in prison for
following his ex-girlfriend using a Global Positioning System-enabled
cell phone attached to her car, one of the first stalking cases of
its kind in L.A. County, officials said.
Ara Gabrielyan, 33, pleaded no contest to one count of stalking
and two counts of making criminal threats, officials said. Gabrielyan
faces deportation to Armenia, his home country, upon completing his
prison term, prosecutors said.
Gabrielyan was arrested Aug. 29 after his former girlfriend,
Gayanne Indezhan, reported to Glendale Police that she allegedly
spotted him trying to change the cell phone's battery under her car,
authorities said. He was accused of following Indezhan, a 35-year-old
Glendale woman, for six months leading up to the arrest.
Andrew Flier, Gabrielyan's defense attorney, believes that he will
only serve up to four months of his sentence since he has nearly
eight months in credit for time already served in jail. Flier also
said Gabrielyan's family wants him to return to his home country.
"We are happy about this because he is a nice man, and the more we
would have fought the case, I think the worse it would have been for
him," he said.
Gabrielyan was reportedly using the phone as a tracking device,
and would unexpectedly turn up while she was at a bookstore or
traveling to Los Angeles International Airport, police said.
During a preliminary hearing earlier this month, Indezhan
testified that Gabrielyan could not accept that their relationship of
two years was over and would call her continually throughout the day.
Gabrielyan never physically attacked her, but she feared for the
safety of herself and her children the month leading up to his
arrest, Indezhan testified. She said he threatened to kidnap and
impregnate her as well as kill both of them so they could be together
"in eternity."
"He told me that he was going to crash my car, then did it," she
said. "He told me he was going to break into my house, and did it.
Then he said he was going to kill me. Did I have that guarantee? No,
but I was afraid he would do what he was going to say."
