Suspect in Chatsworth street-racing hit-run wasn't driving car, attorney claims

CHATSWORTH, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A 21-year-old man suspected of plowing into a crowd of onlookers during an alleged illegal street race in Chatsworth was charged with murder for the death of two spectators Tuesday, but his attorney claims he wasn't even in the car.

Henry Gevorgyan plead not guilty to two counts of murder and one count of engaging in a motor vehicle speed contest on a highway causing a concussion Tuesday.

Police say he was driving a gray Ford Mustang that plowed into a crowd on Feb. 25, killing 26-year-old Eric Siguenza and 50-year-old Wilson Wong. A third person was injured but is expected to survive.

Meanwhile, Gevorgyan's friends and his attorney say he is innocent and was not the driver of the vehicle that hit the victims.

Friends of the suspect released new video of the race that they say shows Gevorgyan waving a flashlight while standing on the street to start the race and not behind the wheel of the Ford Mustang.

Los Angeles police say they are aware of the video and the investigation into the tragedy continues.

Friends of the suspect say they can't believe he's still in jail despite the release of the latest video.

"He's clearly not the driver that was in the video," said Gevorgyan's friend, Danny C. "Photographs, eyewitnesses all prove he was not the driver. We don't understand how they're coming up with this just off one mystery witness."

Gevorgyan's attorney, Kate Hardie, said she is "extremely disappointed and heartbroken."

"I like to believe in the system and having seen the video and also now seeing the discovery that the prosecution provided me with where there are witnesses saying that he was not the driver, my heart is broken for him and his family," Hardie said.

Gevorgyan has no criminal record and is being held in lieu of $2 million bail. Hardie attempted to get the bail reduced in court, but the judge declined.

"Even assuming for argument that he were the driver, I think that's a harsh consequence," Hardie said. "Young kids make stupid mistakes. I'm confident that Henry was not the driver in this case, but I still think that the bail was extremely high."

If convicted as charged, Gevorgyan faces a maximum possible sentence of 33 years to life in state prison.

The case remains under investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department, Valley Traffic Division.