Beanie Babies Mogul's Home Was Scene of Brutal Break-in, as Woman Clings to Life in a Coma

A woman was severely injured after a break in at the home of Beanie Babies mogul Ty Warner.

Around 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 21, deputies with the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office were called to Warner’s Montecito, CA home after an initial report of a possible vehicle theft or home invasion robbery in progress.

When deputies responded to the Fairway Road home, they found 60-year-old Linda Malek-Aslanian outside the home. The victim, who sustained serious injuries, was transported to a local hospital.

Warner was able to escape the residence and contact authorities.

“He was present,” Santa Barbara County District Attorney John Savrnoch tells PEOPLE. “He was not physically harmed. He was able to escape and contact authorities.”

Deputies soon discovered that the suspect, Russell Maxwell Phay, 42, was still inside the residence.

According to the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Office, deputies discovered Phay “barricaded” in an upstairs restroom. Deputies attempted to talk Phay out of the restroom, but he escaped by climbing out the bathroom window. He was apprehended by deputies and booked into the Santa Barbara County main jail.

He has been charged with first-degree attempted murder with premeditation and deliberation, residential burglary with a person present and assault with a force likely to produce great bodily injury and resisting or delaying a peace officer. He is also charged with kidnapping.

There is also a special allegation of personally inflicting great bodily injury “causing the victim to become comatose due to brain injury,” per the charging document obtained by PEOPLE.

Why he allegedly chose the house is unclear.

“At this point I’m not certain about that,” says Savrnoch. “It’s a big house, but of course it’s in an area with a lot of big houses.”

“We don’t have any indication or belief that there was any connection” between the suspect and victims, he says.

“It’s a very serious case,” says Savrnoch. “The injuries that were received by the victim, the charges themselves, attempted murder, residential burglary, person present, assault with a deadly weapon, kidnapping, they’re all very serious charges. We’re really paying a lot of attention to this case. And we’ll be treating it as an incredibly serious case.”

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Phay has entered a plea of not guilty. His attorney could not be reached for comment.

According to the Santa Barbara Independent, Malek-Aslanian is a financial services expert who was employed from 2004 to 2015 as an asset manager for Ty Warner Hotels & Resorts.

Phay was an Army veteran who was a trained infantry combat soldier, per SFGate.