East Bay man sentenced for series of arsons, firebombings

OAKLAND – An East Bay resident was sentenced Tuesday to nearly 20 years in prison for committing a series of arsons and firebombings last year at UC Berkeley and the Oakland federal building, prosecutors said.

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Casey Robert Goonan, 35, of Oakland and Pleasant Hill, previously pleaded guilty to one count of maliciously damaging or destroying property used in or affecting interstate commerce by means of fire or an explosive, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

On June 1, 2024, Goonan placed a bag containing six explosive devices commonly known as Molotov cocktails underneath the fuel tank of a marked University of California Police Department patrol car parked near UC Berkeley, prosecutors said.

Goonan lit the bag on fire and the flames spread to the patrol car, according to prosecutors. The incident was caught on camera.

On June 11, 2024, Goonan also tried to firebomb the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse in Oakland, prosecutors said, adding that Goonan arrived at the federal building carrying a bag containing three Molotov cocktails. Goonan threw rocks at the building, hoping to break a window in order to throw the devices inside.

The plan was foiled by protective services officers, and Goonan instead placed the devices in a planter on the side of the building and lit them on fire, according to prosecutors.

Goonan set other fires at the UC Berkeley campus on June 1, June 13 and June 16, 2024.

Prosecutors said Goonan acknowledged that the arsons and firebombings were inspired by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, and that they called on others to damage property on Bay Area college campuses in support of Palestine. Goonan admitted the acts were intended to influence the conduct of the state and federal governments.

“We are all free to think what we want and express those views peacefully, but the use of violence to achieve political aims — or to silence those with whom you may disagree — has no place in our community and our country,” U.S. Attorney Craig H. Missakian said in a statement. “Anyone who crosses the line between peaceful protest and violence will be met with the full force of the law.”

The court on Tuesday referred to Goonan as a “domestic terrorist” and found that they had committed a felony offense that involved or was intended to promote a federal crime of terrorism, according to prosecutors.

In addition to the prison term, a judge ordered Goonan to serve 15 years of supervised release after they are released from custody, as well as to pay $94,267.51 in restitution.

Goonan has been in custody since their initial arrest on state charges on June 17, 2024.