Disgruntled YouTuber Shoots Up YouTube HQ, Kills 3 And Shoots Herself

Yet another shooting incident has occurred in the U.S. and this time, the site was not a small town high school but YouTube’s headquarters in Silicon Valley. The attacker seems to have been a disgruntled content creator who was frustrated with the platform’s confusing policies. While many others on YouTube had criticized and even threatened the company with violence for the same reasons, this is the first incident in which someone made good on their threats.

This story has several sides to it that are politically charged and sensitive. Aside from sparking yet another trend of gun control debates, the fact that the shooter was a woman and Iranian named Nasim Najafi Aghdam serves to dig up a whole other can of worms. Then there’s the fact that many are attributing this attack to YouTube’s supposed censorship practices, which has led many to celebrate the attack that occurred at its HQ.

Adding to the convoluted narrative of this incident is the fact that police officers actually made contact with Aghdam hours before it happened, CNN reports. The attacker was reportedly sleeping in her car, which was parked around 30 miles from YouTube’s HQ. When police checked her plates, they discovered that she was reported missing.

"We contacted the woman inside the vehicle, who was asleep, to check on her and to determine if she was the same person who had been reported missing," Mountain View police said. "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 ... she was calm and cooperative."

With regards to Aghdam’s background, it seems she actually has a bit of a following on the internet, including her YouTube channel and website. She wasn’t always viewed in a positive light, however, the New York Times reports. Her relationship with social media was a bit of a rollercoaster ride involving admiration and mockery.

At the moment, authorities see no other motivation for the attack than Aghdam’s frustration at YouTube’s confusing policies. She seems to have no connections to the three people she killed before turning the gun on herself.