Four men have been sentenced to prison for their involvement in the 2021 killing of Paul Schrager, a homeless Oakland man who was shot during a robbery at his RV.
John Harrison and Guillermo Lacayo received 15-year state prison sentences, while Charles Fuller and Leopoldo Ruiz were sentenced to 11 years each. All four men pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter, avoiding trial on initial murder charges.
The incident occurred around 4:30 a.m. on May 7, 2021. Schrager had stepped away from his RV, where his girlfriend waited inside. Authorities say the four men entered the RV armed, demanding valuables from the woman. When Schrager returned, a violent confrontation broke out, resulting in a shootout. Schrager was shot multiple times and found dead in the street near his RV. Harrison was also wounded and later identified after arriving at a hospital in a Cadillac Escalade.
Court records revealed that the defendants were identified and charged individually following the incident. As part of the plea agreements, murder charges were dropped.
In a sentencing memo, Lacayo’s defense attorney argued that his client distanced himself from the violence once Schrager returned. Attorney Rico Tagliaferri wrote that Lacayo was behind the RV when the fatal shots were fired and that he never intended for any weapon to be used beyond intimidation.
The attorneys for the other three men declined to comment.
