SLAYING LINKED TO AGGRESSIVE PANHANDLER.

Byline: Theresa Moreau Daily News Staff Writer

David Mekhrabian lost his life over 25 cents.

Visiting his family for just a few weeks, Mekhrabian and his father were sitting in a car Monday when they encountered one of Los Angeles residents' worst fears: A belligerent panhandler.

The pair were in downtown Los Angeles at 448 South Hill St. when police say Edward Dixon approached them and asked for 25 cents.

When the younger Mekhrabian refused, police say the panhandler immediately started screaming obscenities at both men, still seated in the car at the time. The upset panhandler refused to leave when asked.

In an attempt to calm down the irate man, Souren Mekhrabian, police say, opened his car door and tried to reason with the man, but his temper flared even higher. Fearing for the safety of his father, David stepped out of the car.

As David Mekhrabian reached his father's side, police say the panhandler pulled out a knife and stabbed him twice in the left side of his chest, fatally wounding the 22-year-old.

Only the day before Mekhrabian had turned 22.

On Saturday, he and his family celebrated his birthday one day early. It was the last time his 19-year-old sister, Liana, was to ever see her brother alive.

Her birthday present to him had been a simple and an affectionate token of love between brother and sister - ``a hug and a kiss,'' she said in Russian through a translator.

At the Mekhrabian home in the 1200 block of Orange Grove Avenue in Glendale, David's parents stayed inside and refused to talk publicly. But family friends mourning over David's death expressed rage over the senseless stabbing.

``For what? For nothing. For 25 cents,'' said a friend who declined to identify himself.

The Mekhrabians had immigrated to Glendale from Armenia two years ago. David settled in Israel where he joined the Israeli Army. He had planned to return to the army after his stay in Glendale. He had only arrived six weeks ago.

Hours after the attack, police arrested Dixon, 40, of Los Angeles, on suspicion of murdering Mekhrabian, said Detective Steve Koman of the Los Angeles Police Department's Central Division's homicide unit.

Dixon is being held at Los Angeles County Men's Central Jail in lieu of $1 million bail.

The father of the victim identified Dixon, Koman said.

During the investigation, detectives found in a parking lot one block away from the crime scene a discarded knife they believe was used in the stabbing. As a result, police developed a lead that led to them to Dixon.

The stabbing death caps a longstanding debate over panhandlers and problems they cause.

On Aug. 17, the city's new law against aggressive panhandling went into effect, a measure initiated by Mayor Richard Riordan and City Attorney James Hahn.

The law makes it illegal for a beggar to touch, block the path of, or use profane language to someone being panhandled. The ordinance also prohibits begging at ATM machines, asking motorists for money, or soliciting people in lines at movie theaters, buses and trains, or in public buildings.

Police say they have not made any arrests under the new law because they have not yet established regulations for how it will be enforced.

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PHOTO (color) DAVID MEKHRABIAN