YouTube Headquarters Shooting (April 2018)
YouTube Headquarters Shooting (April 2018)
The YouTube Headquarters shooting refers to a mass shooting that took place on April 3, 2018.
It took place at YouTube's headquarters in San Bruno, California.
The shooter, Nasim Aghdam, reportedly died from a self-inflicted wound.
Event
Shooting
A SWAT team is picturing entering YouTube HQ in San Bruno, California, on Tuesday after reports of shots being fired inside
On Tuesday, April 3, 2018, at 12:46 p.m., police were notified about an active shooter at YouTube's headquarters in San Bruno.
They received numerous 9-1-1 calls regarding gunshots taking place near the area of Cherry Avenue and Bay Hill Drive.
Police were seen laying down evidence markers near the seating area of the café.
People near the area reported hearing shots fired, police activity and lockdown procedures.
The full statement from the San Bruno Police Department was as follows: [31]
On Tuesday, April 3, 2018, at 12:46 p.m., the San Bruno Police Department received numerous 9-1-1 calls reporting gunshots at the YouTube Campus located at 901 Cherry Avenue in San Bruno. *San Bruno Police Officers arrived on scene at 12:48pm and immediately entered the building to search for a possible suspect.
Arriving officers encountered numerous employees fleeing the premises.
Officers encountered one victim with an apparent gunshot wound at the site and two additional gunshot victims that had fled to a neighboring business.* *Inside the complex officers located a deceased female inside with a gunshot wound that is believed to have been self-inflicted.
A total of four people were transported to local hospitals, three of which were suffering from gunshot wounds.
The extent of the victims’ injuries are unknown at this time.* Following an initial search to identify any immediate threats, a perimeter was established with the assistance of responding officers from several allied police *agencies.
Tactical teams then conducted a thorough search of the campus located at 901 Cherry Avenue.
No other suspects were located, nor are there additional suspects believed to be associated at this time.
The scene is currently being processed for evidence by San Bruno Police Detectives and the San Mateo County Crime Lab.* The deceased, pictured below, has been identified as Nasim Najafi Aghdam a thirty nine year old female resident of San Diego, CA. *The San Bruno Police Department is investigating a motive for this shooting.
At this time there is no evidence that the shooter knew the victims of this shooting or that individuals were specifically targeted.* *Anyone with any information related to this crime is urged to contact the San Bruno Police Department at (650) 616-7100 or by email: sbpdtipline@sanbruno.ca.gov.
Information can be left anonymously.*
Suspect (Nasim Aghdam)
Reports have confirmed that the YouTube headquarters incident is Nasim Aghdam.
*This woman came to the YouTube workplace with a specific target in mind; someone she knew, someone with whom she wanted to settle a grievance.
She shot that person, she may have shot a second person who was with him, intentionally.
We’re not sure about the third person.*
She reportedly died at the scene due to a self-inflicted wound.
[18] [15]
Law enforcement later confirmed the suspect was Nasim Aghdam.
Before the Shooting
Reported Missing
After the incident, it was reported that Nasim Aghdam had been reported missing.
Aghdam's family members (including her father Ismail Aghdam) reported that she was missing to San Diego County sheriff's officials on March 31, 2018.
On April 3, approximately 1:40 a.m., patrol officers representing the Mountain View Police Department found a license plate number issued someone who had been reported missing; she was also reported "at risk" as it was considered unusual for her to be away from her home for so long.
The Mountain View Police Department issued a press release regarding the encounter their officers had with her that night: [33]
[...] *The woman, identified as 38-year-old Menifee resident Nasim Aghdam, positively identified herself to us and told us during our contact with her that she had decided to leave her family’s home a few days prior due to family issues.
She stated she had come to the area to stay with family and while she was currently living out of her vehicle, she was in the process of looking for a job.
During our contact with her, she was asked a series of questions including, but not limited to, if she was a danger to herself or others.
At no point during our roughly 20 minute interaction with her did she mention anything about YouTube, if she was upset with them, or that she had planned to harm herself or others.
Throughout our entire interaction with her, she was calm and cooperative.* ** *At the conclusion of our interaction with her, she in no way met any reason for us to speak with her further or possibly detain her.
A short time later, we phoned her family to let them know she had been located.
During that call, we spoke with both the woman’s father and her brother.
The father confirmed to us that the family had been having issues at home, but did not act in any way concerned about why his daughter had left.
At no point during that conversation did either Aghdam’s father or brother make any statements regarding the woman’s potential threat to, or a possible attack on, the YouTube campus.
Also, there was no indication from either Aghdam or her family that she may have been in possession of any weapons.* ** *Roughly one hour after our phone call to Aghdam’s family, her father called us back to let us know that she made a series of vegan videos for her channel on YouTube and that the company had recently done something to her videos that had caused her to become upset.
Aghdam’s father stated that she may have been in the area because of this.
He did not seemed concerned that she was in the area, and wanted to simply let us know that may have been a reason for her move up here.
Once again, at no point did her father or brother mention anything about potential acts of violence or a possibility of Aghdam lashing out as a result of her issues with her videos.
They remained calm throughout this second phone call.*
Shooting Range
In the hours before the shooting, sources state she headed to a local shooting range in Mountain View before traveling to YouTube's headquarters.
Timeline
April 3
President Donald Trump's tweet about the shooting (posted at 2:49 PM)
Susan Wojcicki's tweet post-YouTube shooting
1:40 AM: Mountain View police found a woman asleep in her car, which was in a parking lot on the 600 block of Showers drive.
The license plate was registered to an owner who had been reported missing on March 31, two nights before the YouTube shooting happened.
The woman had been reported missing and “at risk” because she had never gone missing or left home before this incident.
**?
AM:** headed to a local shooting range in Mountain View; this was hours before she traveled 25 miles to YouTube's headquarters in San Bruno.
12:46 PM: Police received numerous 911 calls reporting gunfire at the YouTube campus at 901 Cherry Ave. [45]
12:48 PM: Police arrived at the scene of the incident.
12:53 PM: The San Bruno Police Department confirm that the shooter was a female and is deceased from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
1:57 PM: Michelle Tam, a hostess of a local restaurant Hashes & Brews (located about a block away from the YouTube headquarters in San Bruno), confirmed that the streets in the immediate area were filled with police cars and fire trucks.
*I was trying to find tools to help her and I found a bungee cord and I tied that around her leg to stop the blood flow.
She was scared.*
April 4
9:00 AM: Police confirm that Aghdam had visited a Bay Area shooting range hours before the YouTube headquarters shooting.
10:00 AM: Police officers execute search warrants at a 4S Ranch apartment, the residence in which Nasim lived with her grandmother, as well as her family's Menifee home.
10:20 AM: Two of the three patients (two women) were released from the San Francisco General Hospital; a man was upgraded from critical to serious condition.
Motive
Authorities later stated that Aghdam's motive might be related to how her daughter was angry at YouTube for demonetizing her videos on their platform.
On March 31, 2018, her father, Ismail Aghdam, called the police warning them that his daughter, Nasim, was missing and not answering his phone calls.
He told them that he might be heading to YouTube's headquarters because she 'hated' the company.
Victims
San Francisco General Hospital spokesman Brent Andrew said the hospital received three patients from the incident.
The victims included two women (ages 27 and 32) and one man (age 36).
Chief Ed Barberini of the San Bruno Police Department confirmed that there were three victims, as well.
The 27-year-old female is in "fair condition," meaning that her vital signs are stable and, while she may feel uncomfortable, she is conscious.
The 32-year-old woman is is in serious condition, meaning that vital signs may be unstable and not within normal limits.
The 36-year-old male is in critical condition, meaning that vital signs are unstable and there are major complications that could lead to death.
Two Good Samaritans, Jesse Pinada and Denny helped tend to the three shot victims; Denny did not want his last name revealed.
[3] [4]Pinada said he was getting a hamburger at Carl's Jr. across the street from the YouTube offices when he heard three shots fired nearby.
A young woman came out of the office, shot in the left leg, and he said he helped drag her into the restaurant before hearing more shots ring out.
A fourth person reportedly injured her ankle while attempting to flee the scene but was not hurt by gunfire.