YouTube Shooting: Female Opens Fire at Company Headquarters, Injuring 3 Before Killing Self

A woman opened fire at YouTube's headquarters in Northern California Tuesday, wounding at least three people before apparently turning the gun on herself, police said. 

Employees at the sprawling compound were ordered from the site with their hands raised, while some ran to their cars in fear, according to accounts. "There were people running down the street," said Lucacio Simoes, 40, an Uber driver who said he went to the area to see if he could help, according to the Los Angeles Times.

"I just opened the door and asked if they needed help," Simoes added. "I was getting people away from YouTube. At one point I had seven people in the car. I picked up one man ... and when he got in the car he just started crying. He was in shock."

At the Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, doctors said two women and one man had been admitted. A 36-year-old man was listed in critical condition. A 32-year-old female was in serious condition and a 27-year-old woman was listed in fair condition.

Authorities say the shootings appear to have occurred in an outdoor area while some employees were having their lunch break. 

San Bruno Police Chief Ed Barberini told reporters that dispatchers received numerous 911 calls at 12:46 p.m., saying shots had been fired at the sprawling work site, and employees were barricaded inside offices.

The sounds of shots rocked the Silicon Valley compound where some 1,700 people work. YouTube is San Bruno's largest private employer and encompasses about 200,000 square feet. 

The shooter was later identified as 39-year-old Nasim Aghdam, who was reportedly "angry" at the company because it demonetized her videos and cut her ad revenue after a policy change.

Barberini described the initial scene as "very chaotic, as you can imagine."

Google, which owns YouTube, issued a statement saying, "We are coordinating with authorities and will provide official information here from Google and YouTube as it becomes available."

President Donald Trump sent his "thoughts and prayers" to those affected by the shooting.

RELATED STORIES