[3] He was elected twice on the strength of both Muslim and non-Muslim votes because of his successful efforts improving the local economy (including the first regular municipal boat service in Lake Van).

[citation needed] He was strongly supported by the merchant class of Van, who were mostly Armenian.

This put him in conflict with the Dashnaks, who have been agitating against the Ottoman state throughout Eastern provinces.

[5] According to some sources, including Turkish ones, Kapamajian was executed on the evening of December 10, 1912, with two gunshot wounds in the head as he was leaving his home with his wife and daughter to visit his son-in-law.

In his book, Kapriel Serope Papazian said that Bedros was "a wealthy and ambitious man had antagonized Ishkan shot and killed one winter nigh in 1912 while entering his carriage with his wife and daughter"[9]Many people attended Mayor Kapamajian's funeral, including foreign consuls, Van Armenians, and residents of Van who weren't Armenian.