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2020 Boogaloo Murders

SOLVED2020Oakland and Ben Lomond, California3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026
Illustrative

In late May and early June 2020, two linked ambush-style attacks against security personnel and law enforcement officers occurred in California, killing two people and injuring three others. Federal authorities said the attacks were carried out to advance the ideology of the boogaloo movement, a loosely organized far-right anti-government movement whose adherents describe preparing for a second American civil war.

The first attack occurred on May 29, 2020, when an assailant fired a rifle from a white van outside the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building in Oakland, California, striking two Triple Canopy security officers contracted with the Federal Protective Service. One of them, David Patrick Underwood, was killed; the other was seriously injured. The shooting took place near ongoing George Floyd protests but was not connected to them. Surveillance video showed the van had no license plates and had been in the area for over half an hour before the shooting.

On June 6, 2020, Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Department deputies went to a residence in Ben Lomond, California, where they were fired upon with an AR-15-style rifle and attacked with improvised explosive devices. Sheriff Sergeant Damon Gutzwiller was killed, and another deputy was seriously injured. Two responding California Highway Patrol officers were also fired upon, wounding one. The shooter, later identified as Steven Carrillo, was hit during the exchange, fled on foot, and hijacked a vehicle, on which he wrote phrases in his own blood referencing the boogaloo movement, including "boog," "I became unreasonable," and "stop the duopoly." He was later apprehended after being restrained by civilians during an attempted second carjacking.

Carrillo, a 32-year-old U.S. Air Force staff sergeant stationed at Travis Air Force Base, was arrested in connection with the Ben Lomond attack. Evidence recovered from an abandoned van connected to the Oakland shooting, including a ballistic vest bearing boogaloo symbolism, led investigators to Carrillo. The FBI stated that Carrillo and a second man, Robert Alvin Justus Jr., had used the Oakland protests as cover to target law enforcement and had no intention of participating in the demonstrations. Justus surrendered to authorities five days after Carrillo's arrest.

Carrillo was charged with 19 felonies, including murder and attempted murder, with lying-in-wait enhancements. In February 2022, he pleaded guilty to killing Underwood and the attempted murder of the second security officer, and was sentenced to 41 years in prison for the Oakland attack in June 2022. On June 28, 2022, he pleaded guilty to the murder of Gutzwiller and was sentenced on August 26, 2022, to life in prison without parole. Justus was charged with aiding and abetting murder and aiding and abetting attempted murder, pleaded not guilty, and was ultimately convicted and sentenced to life in prison on March 15, 2024.

The case drew public attention after several conservative commentators and public figures, including then-Vice President Mike Pence, made statements linking Underwood's death to the George Floyd protests, which Oakland officials and media watchdog groups characterized as inaccurate.

Key facts

Victims
Damon Gutzwiller, David Patrick Underwood
Date
2020
Location
Oakland and Ben Lomond, California
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 2020-05-29

    Drive-by shooting outside the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building in Oakland, California, kills security officer David Patrick Underwood and seriously injures a second officer.

  2. 2020-06-02

    Investigators state they believe the attackers were targeting uniformed officers; evidence from an abandoned van leads to Steven Carrillo's home in Ben Lomond.

  3. 2020-06-06

    Santa Cruz County sheriff's deputies are ambushed with gunfire and improvised explosive devices at Carrillo's Ben Lomond residence; Sergeant Damon Gutzwiller is killed and another deputy seriously injured. Carrillo is later arrested.

  4. 2020-06-11

    Robert Alvin Justus Jr. surrenders to authorities at a federal building in San Francisco.

  5. 2020-06-16

    FBI announces Carrillo's association with the boogaloo movement and states the Oakland attack used the protests as cover.

  6. 2020-08

    Carrillo pleads not guilty to the murder charge related to the Ben Lomond attack; wears a face mask with political messaging during arraignment.

  7. 2020-10-23

    U.S. Attorney's Office in Minnesota announces federal charges against another boogaloo adherent alleged to have communicated with Carrillo before the Oakland shooting.

  8. 2022-02

    Carrillo pleads guilty to killing Underwood and to the attempted murder of the second security officer.

  9. 2022-06

    Carrillo is sentenced to 41 years in prison for the Oakland drive-by shooting.

  10. 2022-06-28

    Carrillo pleads guilty to the murder of Damon Gutzwiller.

  11. 2022-08-26

    Carrillo is sentenced to life in prison without parole for Gutzwiller's murder.

  12. 2024-03-15

    Robert Justus is sentenced to life in prison.

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People

  • Steven Carrillo

    CONVICTED

    U.S. Air Force staff sergeant convicted and sentenced to 41 years for the Oakland attack and to life without parole for the murder of Sergeant Gutzwiller.

  • Robert Alvin Justus Jr.

    CONVICTED

    Charged with aiding and abetting murder and attempted murder in the Oakland shooting; convicted and sentenced to life in prison in March 2024.

  • Damon Gutzwiller

    VICTIM

    Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Sergeant, killed during the June 6, 2020 Ben Lomond attack.

  • David Patrick Underwood

    VICTIM

    Security officer contracted with the Federal Protective Service, killed in the May 29, 2020 Oakland shooting.

Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.

Places

Oakland and Ben Lomond, California

37.8044, -122.2712

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
In late May and early June 2020, two ambush-style attacks in California—one outside a federal courthouse in Oakland and one at a deputy's home in Ben Lomond—left a federal security officer and a sheriff's sergeant dead. Investigators tied the attacks to the boogaloo movement, which sought to exploit George Floyd protests as cover.
Where did the murders happen?
Oakland and Ben Lomond, California.
Who was convicted?
Steven Carrillo (U.S. Air Force staff sergeant convicted and sentenced to 41 years for the Oakland attack and to life without parole for the murder of Sergeant Gutzwiller.) and Robert Alvin Justus Jr. (Charged with aiding and abetting murder and attempted murder in the Oakland shooting; convicted and sentenced to life in prison in March 2024.).
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved. Last verified July 2026.
More cases in California

Sources

  1. ENCYCLOPEDIC2020 boogaloo murdersWikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. PRESSNorthern California sheriff's deputy killed in ambush shooting, bombingABC News · 2026-07-07
  3. PRESSMan charged in deputy ambush scrawled extremist 'boogaloo' phrases in bloodNBC News · 2026-07-07

Record history

First published
JUL 07, 2026
Last verified against sources
JUL 07, 2026