YouTube HQ Shooting: Female Suspect Dead, Multiple People Injured
SAN BRUNO, Calif. (CBS SF) — At least 3 people were shot and injured in a mass shooting incident at YouTube headquarters in San Bruno Tuesday afternoon before the shooter took her own life, according to authorities. One of those injured was the woman's estranged boyfriend, CBS News reported.
The shooting happened at around 12:46 p.m. in an outdoor cafe on the grounds of the facility.
The woman believed to be the shooter was found dead. "We did locate a victim with what we believe to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound," said San Bruno Police Chief Ed Barberini. "It's a female, but the investigation is still ongoing before we can put all the pieces together."
Barberini said officers encountered a chaotic situation when they arrived.
Heavily armed police surrounded the facility, with armed SWAT vehicles stationed outside. Police officers could be seen patting down employees evacuating the campus to a nearby parking lot, where they were surrounded by police cars.
"We did encounter one victim with an apparent gunshot wound towards the front of the business as we arrived," Barberini said. "Several minutes later while conducting a search of the premises, officers located a second individual with a gunshot wound that may have been self-inflicted."
Barberni said two other victims were found several minutes later at an adjacent business.
San Francisco General Hospital spokesman Brent Andrew said the hospital received three patients. "Two females and one male, we have a 32-year-old female who is in serious condition, a 27-year-old female in fair condition, and a 36-year-old male in critical condition," said Andrew. "We're expecting additional patients."
A fourth person injured her ankle while running from the incident, authorities said.
One witness inside the cafe when the shooting occurred said he didn't believe it was gunfire, at first.
"It was a surprise, because you don't really expect something like that," he said. "I heard some pops, I obviously thought it was balloons, but then I thought that doesn't make sense, not today. Then I heard more shots and that's when everyone started scrambling for the door."
He said he heard about 15 shots.
Vadim Lavrusik, who was working at that facility, wrote on Twitter shortly before 1 p.m. that he heard shots and saw people running while at his desk before barricading himself inside a room with other coworkers.
KPIX 5 reporter Andria Borba said one witness, a YouTube software engineer, saw a man on the ground in the courtyard with an apparent bullet wound to the stomach. The witness broke out in tears while speaking after being overcome with emotion, said Borba.
Borba said at least two Homeland Security units were responding. KPIX 5 reporter Mary Lee said there were large areas of the campus which houses some 1,700 employees was cordoned off.
Police warned people to avoid the area.
KPIX 5 reported that at least two Homeland Security units were responding.
Google, YouTube's parent company, said in a statement that they are "coordinating with authorities and will provide official information here from Google and YouTube as it becomes available."
The headquarters is about 12 miles south of downtown San Francisco, close to San Francisco International Airport.
The San Francisco Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) said it was responding to the scene.
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said President Trump has been briefed on the shooting and they are "monitoring the ongoing situation."
