YouTube shooter died from self-inflicted gunshot to the heart, coroner says
The woman who shot and wounded three people at YouTube’s Silicon Valley headquarters died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the heart, according to the San Mateo County coroner’s office.
Nasim Najafi Aghdam, 39, stormed onto the YouTube campus in San Bruno wielding a 9-millimeter handgun on April 3 and opened fire on a crowd of employees eating lunch in a courtyard. The San Diego resident then turned the gun on herself.
The coroner’s pathology report shows there were no drugs or alcohol in Aghdam’s system that could have affected her mental state, the Mercury News reports.
San Bruno police said there was no evidence that Aghdam knew the victims or targeted specific people, and that animus toward YouTube was a likely motive.
The shooter was angry with YouTube for shutting down her video channel — a mishmash of parody clips, workout videos and vegan recipe tips — after she violated the company’s policies, family members told police. On her personal website, Aghdam complained that YouTube employees had intentionally limited the number of people who viewed her videos, preventing her from making more money and spreading messages that promoted veganism.
Aghdam’s father reported his daughter missing the day before the shooting because she hadn’t answered her phone in two days. Mountain View police found Aghdam sleeping in her car about 12 hours before the shooting, and she told the officers she had left home because of family issues and was living out of her vehicle until she found a job. She was calm and cooperative, and didn’t mention any anger toward YouTube or plans to harm herself or others, police said.
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