Federal prosecutors on Tuesday charged a 26-year-old Oakland resident with assaulting federal officers with a deadly weapon. Brendan Munro Thompson allegedly accelerated a U-Haul truck toward U.S. Coast Guard personnel who were guarding the bridge to Coast Guard Island in Alameda during a protest over immigration enforcement.
The criminal complaint, unsealed Tuesday, alleges that Thompson, who also goes by Bella Thompson and Bella Castillo, on Oct. 23 reversed a 10-foot rental truck toward Coast Guard officers and defied their shouted orders to stop, prompting them to open fire. Thompson was shot in the back, hospitalized, and taken into custody.
The altercation occurred around 10 p.m. following a protest against President Donald Trump’s announced surge of federal forces to the Bay Area. At its peak, there were hundreds of protesters along the Oakland road that connects to Coast Guard Island in the estuary.
“As alleged, Thompson drove a U-Haul truck directly into a line of Coast Guard personnel who were protecting the Coast Guard base,” U.S. Attorney Craig H. Missakian said in a statement. “Let this be clear: There is zero tolerance for assault on federal officers or property.”
Federal agents used flash-bangs and tear gas to disperse the protesters as they blocked the bridge connecting the island, which was intended to serve as a base of operations for federal agents, and Alameda.
Prosecutors said Thompson backed the truck toward the officers, stopping and starting several times before accelerating rapidly in reverse toward them. Coast Guard personnel ordered Thompson to stop and, fearing the truck could strike them or contain explosives, opened fire as the vehicle closed to within roughly 20 feet, according to the complaint.
A GoFundMe (opens in new tab) account set up days before the protest said Thompson had “[lost] housing and income while experiencing a bipolar disorder episode.”
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Thompson is listed as a founder of the queer arts collective DIY Museum, which “[envisions] a world where art transcends binaries and hierarchies,” according to its website. A bio says Thompson has been an avid film photographer since 2020, particularly of portraits and concerts, and has been making zines and handmade books since 2019.
Fears of an immigration enforcement surge in the Bay Area fizzled after Mayor Daniel Lurie announced Oct. 23 that Trump had called him directly and said he was rescinding the deployment of federal officers to San Francisco.
Trump later announced that he had been swayed by conversations with tech billionaires, including Marc Benioff. The Salesforce CEO had called on the president to send the National Guard to San Francisco before recanting amid backlash from influential figures.
Attempts to reach Thompson’s attorney were unsuccessful.
Thompson is scheduled to appear Nov. 10 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kandis A. Westmore for a detention and preliminary hearing. If convicted, Thompson faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.