Anti-government extremist sentenced to life over 2020 drive-by-shooting of security guard

Darryl Coote
·2 min read
UPI
Seen here is a still image taken from security camera footage presented during the trial of Robert Alvin Justus that shows the white van used in the fatal shooting of a security guard in Oakland, Calif., on May 29, 2020. Image courtesy of U.S. Justice Department

March 19 (UPI) -- An anti-government right-wing extremist has been sentenced to life in prison for his role in the fatal 2020 drive-by shooting of a security guard protecting a Oakland federal building during that spring's racial justice protests.

Robert Alvin Justus Jr., 34, of Millbrae, Calif., was sentenced Friday, the Justice Department announced Monday.

He had been convicted by a jury in September on charges of aiding and abetting murder and aiding and abetting attempted murder following a two-week trial.

His co-defendant, Steven Carrillo, previously pleaded guilty to charges of murder and attempted murder and was sentenced to 41 years imprisonment in June 2022 for the shooting.

"With this sentence, the Justice Department has ensured that both of the defendants responsible for brutally murdering a law enforcement officer and seriously wounding another are held accountable for their heinous crimes," Attorney General Merrick Garland said Monday in a statement.

"Law enforcement officers serve their communities at great risk to themselves and anyone who targets these brave men and women will be met with the full force of the Justice Department."

According to prosecutors, the two men were responsible for the fatal shooting of Protective Services officer Dave Patrick and the wounding of his partner on the night of May 29, 2020. The two officers were shot as they were guarding the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse in Oakland, Calif., during protests that had erupted following the police-involved death of George Floyd.

Carrillo in his plea deal admitted to shooting the men with an AR-style rifle from the back of a white Ford Econoline van. Justus was convicted of being the driver of the vehicle.

Evidence presented during Justus' trial showed that both men were adherents of the Boogaloo movement, which the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank describes as a decentralized ideological network that believes in a coming second U.S. civil war.

Prosecutors showed that Justus had a desire to kill police and that the two men had planned the attack during the racial justice protests in hopes that it would spark further anti-government violence.

Following the shooting, and while on the run, Carrillo killed a Santa Cruz Sheriff's deputy and injured another before being arrested. Justus turned himself in to the FBI eight days after the initial shooting as he became aware he was a suspect.

Carrillo also received a life sentence over the killing of the sheriff's deputy.