Woman Charged As Accessory To Murder In Monte Sereno Home Invasion
MONTE SERENO (CBS SF) -- A 22-year-old woman was arraigned in Santa Clara County Superior Court Friday on charges of being an accessory to murder with a gang enhancement in connection with the slaying of Raveesh Kumra during an invasion of his home in in Monte Sereno last month, a police spokesman said Friday.
Raven Chanel Dixon looked back at family members and tried to stifle tears as she was led out of the San Jose courtroom in chains after Judge Jerome Nadler put her bail at $1 million and set a pre-trial hearing for Jan. 15.
Outside of court, Dixon's attorney John Ambrosio said his client had known Kumra professionally and once provided administrative services for him but "has no idea why she has even been arrested."
Ambrosio said that the bail amount "is ridiculous for a single mom of her means."
Dixon's arrest by police on Tuesday came after she received a text message from someone requesting a meeting and "seemed like an ambush arrest," Ambrosio said. "She was not expecting to be arrested."
Dixon was taken into custody that day in Mountain View on the accessory charge and gang enhancement as well as charges of furnishing a controlled substance, prostitution and being drunk in public, according to district attorney's office spokesman Sean Webby.
Prosecutors will not comment about the case beyond the list of charges and are attempting to seal a statement of facts concerning the case, Webby said.
Kumra, 66, a wealthy businessman, was found dead inside his residence in the 18000 block of Withey Road near Beck Avenue in Monte Sereno on Nov. 30 after police received a call at about 1:30 a.m. from his wife that a burglar had ransacked their home.
Kumra's wife was treated for injuries that are not considered life-threatening after the invasion, which police believe involved more than one suspect.
Earlier Friday, Los Gatos-Monte Sereno police issued a news release stating that the home invasion homicide was probably not a random act and that investigators were focusing on possible connections a suspect or suspects may have had to the victim's house.
Police said in the statement that the department "is aware of the concern and anxiety this crime has caused the community" and wanted to offer a limited update to the still-unsolved murder.
Residents in the area of Kumra's home "need not be concerned that they could be victimized similarly," said police, adding that they could not reveal the details "about the circumstance that (led) to this conclusion."
Police have yet to divulge details about how Kumra died.
On Dec. 1, police released a sketch of a suspect described as a white or Hispanic man about 23 to 24 years old who is 6 feet tall with a thin build, black hair and light complexion.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact the Los Gatos/Monte Sereno Police Department at (408) 827-3219 or after hours at (408) 354-8600.
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