Topline
Following a shooting at a Pittsburgh house party that left two minors dead early Sunday morning, Airbnb banned the guest who rented the property, pointing to its 2020 decision to ban parties following a series of violent or destructive incidents connected to its rentals.
Pittsburgh Police crime scene investigators gather outside the short-term rental property, rear, … [+]
Key Facts
Airbnb banned the guest who booked the property from its rental platform for life, and is “considering all legal options to hold this person accountable,” company spokesperson Ben Breit said in a statement Sunday.
The party—which included up to 200 attendees, many of whom were underage, local police say—was thrown without the authorization or knowledge of the property’s host, who specified on the listing that no such gatherings were allowed, according to Airbnb.
Airbnb said the gathering violated its strict ban on parties, which was implemented in 2020 due to concerns about destructive behavior and public health worries.
Tangent
After a 2019 shooting at one of its rentals in California left five people dead, Airbnb banned “party houses,” or houses that were a persistent nuisance to neighbors. In 2020, following further complaints of massive gatherings and instances of violence—27 shootings related to Airbnb properties were reported between March and October of that year, according to the New York Times—the company banned all gatherings of 17 or more people.
Key Background
Two minors—one as young as 14—were killed and eight other people suffered gunshot wounds in Sunday’s shooting in the East Allegheny neighborhood of Pittsburgh, the city’s police chief Scott Schubert said at a press conference. Five more people were injured after jumping out of windows or falling down stairs in an attempt to escape the shooting. Police suspect multiple shooters fired off dozens of rounds at the party at around 12:30 a.m., Schubert said, and the police have yet to name suspects or make any arrests, according to CNBC. Several neighbors made noise complaints about the party to the police prior to the shooting, according to the Washington Post, though Shubert said he was not aware of these reports.
Crucial Quote
“We have reached out to the Pittsburgh Police Department as well as Mayor Gainey’s team to offer our support for their investigations,” Airbnb spokesperson Breit said. “We hope the people responsible for this bloodshed will be found quickly.”
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/masonbissada/2022/04/17/airbnb-bans-guest-who-booked-pittsburgh-rental-tied-to-deadly-shooting/