Oakland auto shop owner was killed in his store by angry customer, police say

OAKLAND — The man suspected of killing a 68-year-old former farmer workers’ rights activist and business owner was an irate customer, according to authorities.

Robert Leigh Moore, 33, of Oakland, has been charged with murder and being a felon in possession of a firearm in connection with the Feb. 3 killing of Aristeo Zambrano, a former United Farm Workers advocate who was killed inside the auto shop he owned and operated.

Police say Moore was angry with Zambrano over a transaction, possibly related to a car battery that was found out of place, just a few feet from Zambrano’s body.

Zambrano’s body was discovered by customers on the morning of Feb. 3, inside Bay City Alternators on International Boulevard near 88th Avenue in East Oakland.

Police say the first clue was the car battery, which was in an unusual place. They later identified Moore as a suspect through video surveillance and by identifying the car Moore allegedly fled to after the shooting.

The security footage showed Zambrano’s killer yelling from the counter, then reaching into his sweatshirt, pulling a gun and firing, police say.

After identifying Moore as a suspect, police recovered surveillance footage from the Oakland apartment complex where Moore lived. It showed him leaving his home a few minutes before the shooting, carrying what police believe was the battery found near where Zambrano was killed.

The criminal complaint alleges that Moore was convicted in 2020 of battery likely to produce great bodily injury in Contra Costa County, and sentenced to prison. He is being held at Santa Rita Jail without bail, court records show.