California: A combat veteran, who previously claimed he was “trained to eliminate” people, reportedly barricaded himself inside the mansion of Beanie Babies tycoon Ty Warner, leading to a tense standoff with law enforcement.
Russell Maxwell Phay, 43, was taken into custody after a confrontation on May 21, 2025, at the Montecito home of the 80-year-old Warner, the reclusive billionaire behind Beanie Babies. The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office responded to a distress call from Warner’s residence, where deputies discovered a critically injured woman inside. Authorities confirmed that other occupants of the home had fled the scene before law enforcement arrived.
According to the police, Phay was holed up in an upstairs bathroom. A deputy, trained in crisis intervention, tried to negotiate with Phay, but the suspect allegedly attempted to escape through a second-story window. With the help of a K-9 unit, authorities apprehended him outside the house.
The woman, a 60-year-old financial services expert who had previously worked for Warner’s hotel division, was found severely beaten and “comatose due to brain injury,” according to a criminal complaint. The victim’s name has not been released. Warner was unharmed in the incident.
Phay, a U.S. Army veteran, had been featured in a 2014 article in the San Francisco Chronicle, where he openly declared, “I am fully trained for combat. I have been trained to eliminate you. I know that sounds crazy, but it is true.” Phay’s criminal history includes multiple legal issues, such as an assault on his wife in 2017, when she tried to leave him and take their child. He was also involved in a 2024 complaint involving threats made against a couple in Arroyo Grande.
Currently held on a $1 million bond, Phay faces charges of attempted murder, burglary, kidnapping, assault, and resisting arrest.
