Woman in coma after break-in at Beanie Babies billionaire's home

Global News

3 days ago

A woman is in a coma after a man allegedly broke into the California mansion of Beanie Babies billionaire founder Ty Warner and violently attacked her.
Russell Maxwell Phay, a 42-year-old war combat veteran who served in the U.S. army, was arrested last week after the break-in in Montecito, according to a statement from the Santa Barbara Sheriff's Office.
The Santa Barbara Independent reported that Phay broke into Warner's residence on May 21 and claimed that it was his home, demanding that everyone inside leave.
He then 'violently' beat a woman in the home before barricading himself in an upstairs bathroom, according to authorities.
According to NBC News, 80-year-old Warner, a known recluse, was home at the time of the attack but was not injured. The woman, in her 60s, used to work for Warner's hotels division, KSBW reported, but it is unclear why she was in Warner's home at the time of the incident.
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A criminal complaint obtained by KSBW said that the victim, who is said to be 'comatose due to brain injury,' was a 'particularly vulnerable' person.
The sheriff's office says that when police were called to Warner's mansion, they found the woman suffering from 'severe injuries outside the residence.' She was immediately taken to hospital.
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Meanwhile, authorities said Phay had barricaded himself in an upstairs bathroom and tried to escape by climbing out a window and jumping to the ground.
Montecito: Deputies are on scene of a single barricaded subject on Fairway Road. Channel Drive is blocked and we ask the public to avoid the area. Updates here as they become available. Time of call 4:31 pm.
— PIO Raquel Zick (@SBSOPIO) May 22, 2025
He was quickly apprehended by deputies and a sheriff's K9.
According to the police filings, Phay may not have known the identity of the homeowner at the time.
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He has been charged with obstruction and various felonies, including burglary, assault with a deadly weapon, battery with serious bodily injury and kidnapping. He has also been charged with first-degree attempted murder.
According to the legal news website Law & Crime, Phay was featured in a 2014 article in the San Francisco Chronicle focused on a court that specialized in veterans' issues. In that article, Phay stated, 'I am fully trained for combat. I have been trained to eliminate you. I know that sounds crazy, but it is true.'
The Independent reports that this is not Phay's first brush with the law; at the time he was featured in the Chronicle, he had been accused of attacking his wife when she attempted to leave him, taking their son with her, and was also named in a 2024 complaint after he allegedly threatened a California couple.
KSBW also reported that Phay was charged in 2018 with battery and assault, but the case was dismissed last year.
Warner's company, Ty Inc., manufactured and distributed stuffed toys, including the Beanie Babies that were all the rage in the 1990s, earning him a massive fortune.