California Man Cleared After Contaminated Paramedic Equipment Found To Be Cause Of DNA Found On Murder Victim’s Body

There is an interesting story out of San Jose where a man was falsely accused of being an accomplice to murder despite being in a hospital at the time of the crime. Defense attorneys often argue contamination in DNA cases and the attorneys for Lukis Anderson, 26, insisted that either contamination or sheer negligence had to be the reason for the finding of his DNA on the body of robbery victim and Monte Sereno businessman, Raveesh “Ravi” Kumra (LEFT). It turns out that that is precisely what happened. The same ET crew that had worked on Anderson earlier responded to the home invasion of Kumra and used the same equipment — transferring the DNA to the body.

Kumra, 66, is a wealthy former owner of a Saratoga winery and was home with his wife when men broke into the home and bound and gagged him. He would die of asphyxiation during the robbery of cash and valuables. His wife, Harinder Kumra, was also beaten and bound but survived. Javier Garcia, 21, of Oakland, and Deangelo Austin, 21, are charged with the savage attack.

However, it was Anderson’s role that was perplexing. Anderson said that he was hospitalized before the crime after drinking excessively. Hospital records show him being transported by paramedics that night to a hospital where he spent the night. However, he was charged with murder based on the DNA evidence.

His attorney recently found that the same paramedics went to the Kumra home a few hours later and also tried to resuscitate Kumra. The equipment was contaminated with Anderson’s DNA and transferred to the body.

A prostitute who alleged also visited Kumra when his wife was gone was also cleared of involvement in the murder. Police thought that she had taken pictures of the house to help the intruders but concluded that she was merely taking the pictures to show friends the “cool house” of a john.