HOLLYWOOD/BEVERLY HILLS—Following police efforts, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department announced in a press conference Wednesday morning that an arrest had been made in connection to the murders of three men in a West Hollywood apartment on Thursday, August 26. Harold Yong Park, a 31-year-old resident of East Hollywood, was taken into police custody at 11 a.m. on Monday, August 30, after a patrol unit recognized his license plate number.
According to the Sheriff’s Department, Park’s vehicle was located Monday morning by a Lomita Station patrol unit equipped with technology that recognizes and matches license plates. Witnesses had earlier reported seeing Park and his vehicle near the murder scene, which led sheriffs to initiate a traffic stop. The sheriffs then allegedly discovered several pounds of marijuana in Park’s car. Park and his girlfriend, who was riding in the passenger’s seat at the time of the arrest, were initially booked for drug possession. After Park was interviewed at the Lomita Station, he reportedly confessed to the murders. Park is now facing three felony counts of murder. Investigators believe he killed the three victims because he did not have enough money to purchase the high-grade marijuana. Instead, Park stole about five pounds of the drug.
On Thursday, August 26, LA County Sheriff’s deputies responded to an initial call at 9:15 p.m. from the 600 block of N. Kings Road that reported shots being fired in the area. Heavy investigation by the Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau led homicide detectives to determine that Park visited the Kings Arms apartment at 612 N. Kings Road to purchase marijuana from the victims. Officials believe the three men were purchasing the drug from legal dispensaries and reselling it from their apartment.
The victims have been identified as 27-year-old Pirooz Moussazadeh, his 38-year-old brother Shahriar Moussazadeh, and 27-year-old Beverly Hills native Bernard Khalili. During the investigation, “drug packaging materials” were found in the apartment, according to the Sheriff’s Dept. Investigators believe that the three victims may have known Park, noting that no sign of struggle or forced entry was detected at the time of the murders.
Sheriff Baca of the LA County Sheriff’s Department stated in a release that, “unusual circumstances and exemplary investigative work,” led to Park’s arrest, and investigators would not be searching for additional suspects.
Park is being held at the Men’s Central Jail in Los Angeles and was scheduled to appear in court at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, September 1, at the Beverly Hills Municipal Court, but his arraignment was continued until September 14.
