POLICE SEARCHING FOR LEADS IN FILMMAKER'S DEATH.

Byline: CHARLES F. BOSTWICK Staff Writer

LLANO -- A $10,000 reward has been offered for information in the slaying of a small-time filmmaker, who was shot to death at his isolated desert home that doubled as a film set.

Whoever killed Mirhan Topouzoglou, 55, a French citizen whose last film released was ``Killa Zombies,'' probably also stole four expensive movie cameras, a diesel generator and his pickup truck, which was found abandoned in the desert several miles away.

``I think everything points to someone local,'' Los Angeles County sheriff's homicide Sgt. Tim Miley said. ``They knew where to take the truck to burn it. A person has to know how to drive in and out of that area without being seen.''

Los Angeles County supervisors last week authorized a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Topouzoglou's killer or killers.

Topouzoglou's home is about 1 1/2 miles from the nearest paved road, in a desert where creosote bushes and desert washes hide isolated trailers and beat-up homes. Many of the trailers have no running water, electricity is provided by generator, and their inhabitants are looking to avoid society, brew up methamphetamine or just live cheaply in solitude and quiet.

In 2003 at one of those isolated trailers, sheriff's Deputy Steve Sorensen was gunned down by a man who later died in a fiery gunbattle with deputies at another desert homestead.

Miley has been visiting the isolated homes in the area trying to find anyone with information to help him identify Topouzoglou's killer.

``It's a different kind of place,'' Miley said.

Topouzoglou had lived on his property for less than a year, Miley said. He lived in a fairly nice mobile home and had other mobile homes made into interior movie sets, such as an office and a restaurant.

Topouzoglou rented out the sets to other small or start-up filmmakers.

Topouzoglou had a fiancee who visited on weekends and two children at Oxford University in England, where his ex-wife lives, Miley said.

Topouzoglou was found dead in front of his home June 1 by friends who came by the property in the 19000 block of East Avenue S. His truck, a reddish-brown 1985 Ford F-250, was found four days later about nine miles away in the desert at Avenue J and 200th Street East.

Detectives aren't certain what all was taken, but are sure the thieves took two Panasonic DVX100 digital movie cameras and two Eclair 16mm film movie cameras. Also missing is an electrical generator, of unknown make.

Anyone who saw someone driving Topuzoglou's truck or has knowledge about the other stolen items is asked to call the sheriff's homicide bureau at [phone] or contact the Lake Los Angeles sheriff's substation on 170th Street East south of Avenue O.

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(color -- ran in AV edition only) TOPOUZOGLOU