SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — The legal proceedings following the killing of Raveesh “Ravi” Kumra — a wealthy Silicon Valley venture capitalist killed in a brutal home-invasion robbery of his Monte Sereno mansion— have taken an odd twist, with a former exotic dancer asking a court for monthly support and a petition with the court seeking half his estate.
Keila Goggins has asked a judge to recognize her claim that Kumra fathered her two daughters — ages 7 and 9, the San Jose Mercury News reported Saturday.
Goggins, 40, told the newspaper in a telephone interview Friday from her out-of-state home that she met Kumra in 2001 through a friend who worked with her as a prostitute in Carson City, Nev.
“I’m not a gold digger. I’m not trying to extort money from his estate. I’m anything from that. I love my girls. He loved our girls. This is what he would have wanted for them,” Goggins said.
Earlier this month, the girls flew in from their home to testify that the 66-year-old Kumra was their father in every way they knew, including taking them to Disneyland.
In a response, Kumra’s two older daughters — both in their 30s — said in legal documents that their father had no financial obligation to the children.
The Kumras also said in the court filing that their father — a cellphone entrepreneur and former owner of a popular winery concert venue — was essentially broke when he died and was “living off money” his ex-wife gave him.
The ex-wife — Harinder “Rani” Kumra — continued to live with him in the Monte Sereno mansion after their divorce. She was beaten in the Nov. 30 attack when three intruders ransacked the home, bound and gagged Raveesh Kumra and made off with cash, jewelry and rare coins. He died on the kitchen floor from asphyxiation, officials said.
Santa Clara County prosecutors have charged Deangelo Austin, 21, Javier Garcia, 21, and Lukis Anderson, 26, with murder in the case. Austin and Garcia are also charged with a gang enhancement.
They are in jail awaiting trial, along with two alleged prostitutes believed to be connected to the killing.