The comrades Karapet Koulaksizian, Hovhannes Agripasian, and Vardan Goloshian, left the village of Haftvan (Salmast district of Persia), for Van on May 16, 1889. They were stopped near Van by Ottoman police. The police demanded that they disarm to protect the accompanying caravan. In the conflict Goloshian and Agripasian died and Koulaksizian escaped. The police recovered two letters (accompanying documents) addressed to Koulaksizian, one from Avetis Patiguian of London and the other from Mekertitch Portugalian in Marseille.