VALLEJO, Calif. – A U.S. Marine Corps veteran was shot and killed Thursday morning as he came to the aid of a restaurant worker during an armed robbery in Northern California.
Robert Sundin, 70, a married father from Napa who worked in the VA healthcare system, would arrive at Scotty’s Restaurant at Tennessee and Tuolumne streets in the city of Vallejo every weekday morning, at 5:30 a.m. In doing so, he’d keep an eye on Teresa Brasher as she opened the restaurant, FOX 2 reported.
“He saved my life. That’s the type of person he was. He saved my life. He’s always going to be my guardian angel for life,” Brasher said about Sundin.
She noted, “God wasn’t ready for me. But they had a place for Bob up there.”
On that horrible Thursday morning last week, Brasher said she had parked outside the restaurant when a man in a hoodie and ski mask rode up to her car on an electric scooter.
“He came up to my door, and he pointed his finger at me,” she said. “He was pointing at my purse. I don’t know if he used his finger or a gun.”
As the robbery was in progress, Sundin arrived and exited his truck.
Brasher continued, “The guy grabs him. And I can see Bob pulling away like that, and that’s when I heard the gunshot go off.”
“He’s always going to be my guardian angel for life.” @USMC veteran Robert Sundin died a hero, says Teresa Brasher, longtime server at Scotty’s Restaurant. Sundin, her regular customer, was shot dead while protecting her from apparent robber. @VallejoPd case. 4,5,6,7 p.m. @KTVU pic.twitter.com/0T16yvNvKe
— Henry K. Lee (@henrykleeKTVU) December 12, 2022
The suspect fled immediately following the shooting and Sundin was pronounced dead at the scene, FOX reported.
Brasher added, “He’s my hero. He’ll always be my hero for life.”
Sundin had a spot in the restaurant where he’d sit every morning, reading the newspaper while making small talk with staff while the cook would prepare his regular order, Scotty’s #2 omelet but with spinach, no bell peppers because that gave him heartburn, as well as pancakes, according to FOX 2.
United States Marine Corps (iStock)
Scotty’s owner, Nay Ung, reflected on Sundin’s legacy.
“That’s what makes it hard,” Ung said. “He was just such a wonderful man. It was just somebody you come across, and you feel comfortable talking to him.”
The Marine veteran was also a volunteer in the men’s ministry at First Assembly of God in Fairfield.
Pastor Eric Lura said, “If there was a need he saw at the church, he met it. He was the first person to arrive and last to leave.”
