A Lewis County woman is facing a murder charge in connection to the July 23 shooting death of Clark County Sheriff’s detective Jeremy Brown as another pleaded not guilty.
On Sept. 13, Lani Kraabell, 48, of Winlock, appeared in Clark County Superior Court on charges of second-degree murder and four counts of possession of a stolen firearm. She is the third person facing a murder charge in the death of Brown, who was shot at a Vancouver apartment complex while conducting surveillance on the suspects in connection with a firearms burglary.
According to a probable cause affidavit for Kraabell’s arrest, Brown was surveilling Kraabell’s apartment at The Pointe Apartments after she arrived at the unit along with suspects Guillermo Raya Leon, 26, Abran Raya Leon, 28, and Misty Raya, 35. The other three were being investigated for a burglary of a storage unit in Hazel Dell in June, where Misty Raya was alleged to have stolen about 30 firearms and between 20,000 to 30,000 rounds of ammunition, identification documents, credit cards and other belongings totaling more than $5,000.
Earlier on the day of the shooting, the three were picked up by Kraabell at a Target store in Portland and transferred several of the stolen firearms from their vehicle to Kraabell’s, the affidavit stated. According to police interviews, Kraabell and Raya intended to sell the firearms to someone Kraabell knew.
In an Aug. 18 interview, Kraabell said she received a call from Raya who said she was “in trouble” and asked Kraabel to pick the three up that day, the affidavit stated. While driving to the apartment, Kraabell called a man identified as Stephen Iverson, 53, about selling the stolen firearms, who in turn said he would call another man, identified as Charles Cooper, 45, about the sale.
After arriving at the apartment, Kraabell told police she knew the three she had picked up had moved stolen ammunition into the apartment, but did not know the firearms were moved until later, after Brown was shot, the affidavit stated. The following day Kraabell said she had loaded an ottoman containing the firearms into Iverson’s vehicle and helped transport it to a storage unit. Surveillance video at the storage facility from July 24 showed Kraabell carrying the same ottoman into a unit.
According to the affidavit, Cooper met with Kraabell and Iverson at the storage unit a day or two after the shooting, and agreed to help sell the firearms. When Cooper realized the firearms were in connection to the investigation that led to Brown’s death, he contacted a friend, Richard Ott, who agreed to hold onto the guns until he, too, learned the connection to the shooting and made Cooper come back and take them a few days later.
Both Cooper and Iverson are facing trafficking charges and pleaded not guilty in August, according to court records.
Kraabell’s bail was set at $2 million at the Sept. 13 hearing. A day later, Abran Raya Leon also made a court appearance, where his bail was set at $3 million.
Abran Raya Leon faces charges of second-degree murder, possession of a stolen firearm and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm. His arraignment is scheduled Sept. 24.
Abran Raya Leon is the alleged getaway driver from the apartment, taking Misty Raya and Guillermo Raya Leon with him.
According to court documents, after arriving at the apartment, Guillermo Raya Leon left the unit to confront Brown who was parked nearby. Shots were fired, and Guillermo Raya Leon returned to the apartment, stating the three had to leave.
After leaving, Abran Raya Leon evaded police before crashing on Interstate 205 near Padden Parkway, according to court records. He and Misty Raya were later arrested in the backyard of a nearby house.
On Sept. 9, Guillermo Raya Leon pleaded not guilty to a charge of first-degree aggravated murder and possession of the stolen firearm. Following the shooting and crash, he was arrested by U.S. Marshals in Salem, Oregon on July 25.
Guillermo Raya Leon is being held without bail. At the hearing, Clark County Superior Court Judge Derek Vanderwood denied a motion by the state to remove Brown’s personal cell phone from evidence, and one by the defense regarding sharing of pre-trial information with the media.
Guillermo Raya Leon is scheduled for a readiness hearing for his trial on April 14.
Misty Raya pleaded not guilty Aug. 16 to nearly three dozen charges of firearms theft, among other charges, related to the Hazel Dell burglary. She is scheduled for a March 3 readiness hearing for her trial.
