Martinez, California – Two men have been charged with felony offenses related to the burglary of a tobacco store in El Cerrito, and police pursuit of a stolen truck, that culminated in a fatal head-on collision that killed one person and injured another.
35-year-old Oakland resident Patrick Owens Sheckells faces six felony charges, including the murder of Lee David Weiner. 56-year-old Andre Lamar Alberty of Stockton, has been charged with second-degree burglary [PC 459] and grand theft of personal property [PC 487(a)], as well as seven prior “strike” convictions.
On March 19th around 4:30 am, while driving a stolen pickup truck the wrong way on Interstate 580 in Oakland, Sheckells struck Weiner’s vehicle head-on. The impact killed Weiner and seriously injured another driver, Jerry Brunson, whose vehicle was also involved in the crash.
The collision in Oakland preceded a burglary and high-speed police pursuit that began in El Cerrito. At around 4:20 am, the El Cerrito Police Department received a 911 call from the owner of a tobacco store – who reported his security camera captured footage of two individuals driving a truck through the front of the store and stealing large amounts of tobacco products.
Officers from El Cerrito Police responded to the call and saw a truck matching the description entering Interstate 80. They followed the truck on the freeway. However, officers terminated the pursuit due to the danger to the public. The fatal head-on collision occurred approximately five minutes later in the Bay Bridge Maze.
On April 12th, Patrick Sheckells was arraigned on charges via a video call from his hospital bed. Andre Alberty was arraigned today in Martinez. He’s in custody at the Martinez Detention Facility and his bail is set at $140,000. A preliminary hearing for Alberty is scheduled on April 24th at 8:30 am in Department 5 in Martinez.
In addition to murder [PC 187 (a)], Sheckells faces charges of:
- Wrong way driving on a freeway causing injury or death [VC 21651(c)]
- Driving under the influence of a controlled substance causing injury [VC 23153(f)]
- Driving or taking a vehicle without consent [VC 10851(a)]
- Second-degree burglary [PC 459]
- Grand theft of personal property [PC 487(a)]
Case No: 02-24-00376 | The People of the State of California v. Sheckells, Patrick Owens
Case No: 02-24-00377 | The People of the State of California v. Alberty, Andre Lamar
Information released by the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office
Previous Stories:
- March 29 – Murder Charges Filed Against Man Accused in Deadly Wrong-Way Crash On I-580
- March 19 – Updated: 1 Dead in Fatal Crash After Truck Rammed El Cerrito Business
