A man appeared in court Thursday accused of murder and attempted murder during a burglary following aknife attack at the $1.4 million Burbank home of a cherished motherand her mental health activist daughter.
Described as a “beautiful family,” Meera Varma, 25, who appears in pictures with Joe Biden and Oprah Winfrey, and her 59-year-old mom, Arti Varma, were stabbed at about 6am on Monday.
Her “joyful” mother, a beloved second-grade teacher at Bret Harte Elementary School in the city, died from multiple stab wounds.
Meera was able to call 911 despite her injuries and is described by police as being in stable condition.
Sergio Meza Fraire, 30, pleaded not guilty when he appeared before Judge Kerry White in Pasadena Superior Court during a five-minute arraignment hearing while wearing the same baggy grey t-shirt and jeans shorts he was arrested in.
He is facing one felony count of murder with a special circumstance of lying in wait, one felony count of attempted murder and one felony count of first-degree residential burglary.
The suspect is also charged with using a deadly weapon — a knife — in the murder and attempted murder and “personally inflicted great bodily injury” to Meera.
Fraire, represented by public defender Mayda Dlores-Medrano, mumbled “yes” twice when asked by the judge if he understood the proceedings. No bail was granted.
Investigators are still trying to determine a motive for the attack and whether Fraire had a prior connection to the family.
He wasarrested by a heavily armed SWAT teama few hours after the slaying.
Source: California Post – Breaking California News, Photos & Videos
