Robert Paul Rundo, founder of a Southern California white supremacist organization, received a two-year federal prison sentence Friday for orchestrating violence at political rallies across California in 2017.
The 34-year-old leader of the Rise Above Movement (RAM), described by prosecutors as a “combat-ready, militant” white nationalist group, pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges under the federal Anti-Riot Act. The group targeted political gatherings in Huntington Beach, Berkeley, and San Bernardino.
Rundo’s case has followed a complex legal path since his 2018 arrest for inciting violence at California protests and the Charlottesville riot. Though initially dismissed in 2019, federal appeals courts reinstated the charges in 2021, leading to his extradition from Romania where he had fled. U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada emphasized the prosecution’s importance in protecting civil rights and combating hate-driven violence that
