An 85-year-old Sydney grandfather has been murdered after being kidnapped from his home in a suspected case of mistaken identity, prompting widespread shock and a major police response.

New South Wales Police allege that the elderly man, identified as Chris Baghsarian, was taken from his North Ryde home in the early hours of February thirteenth by up to three men who stormed the property and forced him into a vehicle.

Investigators believe Baghsarian was not the intended target and was erroneously identified by his captors in what they describe as a botched criminal enterprise.

Human remains found near the Lynwood Golf and Country Club in Pitt Town, on Sydney’s north-western outskirts, were formally identified as Baghsarian’s after an intense search operation.

Evidence suggests he died at a property in Dural before his body was transported and dumped in bushland.

Police allege that the kidnappers intended to extort a large ransom from an individual connected to organised crime but mistakenly seized Baghsarian instead.

On February twenty-fifth, authorities charged two men, aged twenty-nine and twenty-four, with murder and kidnapping with intent to extort, after dramatic early-morning arrests at their homes in Kenthurst and Castle Hill.

Both suspects were remanded in custody after being refused bail at Blacktown Local Court.

Detectives also executed search warrants at a Lake Macquarie address, seizing electronic devices, clothing and other items linked to the investigation.

Police have described the case as a horrifying example of mistaken identity, noting that Baghsarian had no known ties to organised crime and was a widowed grandfather with deep family connections in the community.

His loved ones have expressed profound grief and confusion over how their relative became ensnared in a violent crime unrelated to his life.

Officers continue to investigate additional suspects believed to be involved in the kidnapping plot, while offering support to the victim’s family as the legal process unfolds.