LAS VEGAS (AP) — A California father told a judge in Las Vegas on Tuesday that he will not fight his transfer in custody to Los Angeles to face a murder charge in the disappearance of his 5-year-old son.
Aramazd Andressian Sr. stood in shackles and said during a brief court appearance that the 47 days he spent in Las Vegas was not attempt to avoid investigators looking for Aramazd Andressian Jr.
"If California wants me they can come and get me," Andressian told Justice of the Peace Eric Goodman. "I never came here in an intent to flee."
Andressian Sr. was arrested Friday in Las Vegas, and is being held at the Clark County jail in Las Vegas on $10 million bail.
Andressian's attorney, Daniel Nardoni, has said his client is "adamant" that he never harmed his son and is innocent of the charges. Nardoni was not in court and did not immediately respond to phone and email messages seeking comment.
Investigators think the boy was killed early April 21 after a family trip to Disneyland, in a bid by the father to get back at his estranged wife for a tumultuous relationship. A body has not been found.
The search began April 22, after Andressian Sr. was found passed out in a car in a park in South Pasadena, California. Sheriff's officials said he had taken prescription pills and the car was doused with gasoline in an apparent attempt to take his own life.
Investigators believe Andressian drove April 21 about 145 miles (230 kilometers) to California's Lake Cachuma. Sheriff's homicide detectives have searched the lake twice in the past few months, using dogs and a dive team.
Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey said Monday she was confident prosecutors can prove their case without a body, but conceded it will be a challenge.
Sheriff's officials and federal agents said they arrested Andressian because they feared he planned to leave the U.S. and go to a country without an extradition agreement with the U.S. Authorities did not name the country.
