MVPD statement regarding officers' interactions with woman responsible for YouTube shooting
http://www.mountainview.gov/news/displaynews.asp?NewsID=1300&TargetID=9We wanted to take a moment to further address the reports regarding Mountain View officers’ interactions with a woman responsible for the tragic event in San Bruno yesterday.
Around 1:40 am on Tuesday, April 3, Mountain View patrol officers proactively checked a license plate of a vehicle that was parked in a lot on the 600 block of Showers Drive. The license plate came back to a registered owner out of Southern California who had been reported missing on March 31 to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office. We called the Sheriff’s Office to confirm the missing persons reports, and personnel there told us that in that report, the woman had been reported missing and “at risk†because she had never gone missing or left home before. 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.
The woman, identified as 38-year-old Manifee 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.
The incident at YouTube on Tuesday was a tragedy. No one should ever feel unsafe in their workplace. We have full confidence in the investigative efforts of the San Bruno Police Department and their colleagues as they tackle this case.
The victims of this heinous act and their families are in our thoughts during this extremely difficult time.
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