Halloween party shooting leaves 5 dead in California

Five people were killed and several others were injured after gunfire erupted at a Halloween party in an Airbnb rental in Orinda, California, Thursday night, according to police in the San Francisco Bay area.

The shooting began just before 11 p.m. in the posh hillside community about 17 miles east of downtown San Francisco. Officers described a chaotic scene of more than 100 frightened party-goers scattered around property, some of them nursing fresh wounds, others fleeing into the night.

Three victims were pronounced dead at the scene and another died later at John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek, Contra Costa County’s trauma center, according to a statement released Friday by the sheriff’s department. A fifth victim died in the hospital late Friday night, the sheriff said in a statement.

All the victims were under 30, according to police, who identified them as Tiyon Farley, 22; Omar Taylor, 24; Ramon Hill Jr., 23; Javin County, 29; and Oshiana Tompkins, 19. All of them were from the Bay Area.

Ambulances rushed injured people to the hospital before midnight, while others transported themselves, according to police. At the John Muir Medical Center, one victim was in critical condition, one was in serious condition, and another was treated and released, said Ben Drew, a hospital spokesperson.

As of late Friday, police had not identified any suspects nor indicated what led to the shooting. Officers said they found two guns at the house and were trying to determine whether they were used in the shooting or other crimes. Investigators were also examining shell casings, interviewing witnesses and analyzing other evidence, according to police.

Orinda Police Chief David Cook called the investigation “very complex.”

“This is a wide area with a lot of people, and we’re still trying to wrap our arms around exactly what transpired,” he told reporters Friday.

The deadly outburst rattled neighbors and local officials in Oridna, an affluent community of about 18,000 that hasn’t recorded a homicide in seven years and was recently ranked one of “America’s friendliest towns” by Forbes Magazine.

“This is a tragedy of unimaginable gravity,” Orinda Mayor Inga Miller said.

Responding to the shooting on Twitter, California Gov. Gavin Newsom renewed calls for Congress to pass gun control legislation. “This will barely make the news today. That’s how numb we have become to this,” he said. “Our hearts are aching for the victims and all those affected by this horrific tragedy.”

Airbnb chief executive Brian Chesky said Saturday that the company is now banning “party houses” and “redoubling our efforts to combat unauthorized parties and get rid of abusive host and guest conduct.” Measures Airbnb is taking include manually screening reservations flagged as “high-risk” and creating a “rapid response team” for party houses, he said.

The company may remove users who violate its new policies, Chesky said.

“We must do better, and we will,” he tweeted. “This is unacceptable.”

Police said they received two noise complaints on the property Halloween night – one at 9:19 p.m., the other at 10:25 p.m. – and dispatched officers about 20 minutes after the second call to see what was going on. Reports of gunfire came in around 10:50 p.m. Police said people had arrived from “throughout the Bay Area” for the event, which was promoted on social media as an “Airbnb mansion party.”

The owner of the property, Michael Wang, told the Chronicle that he rented the home to a woman who claimed she was organizing a 12-person family reunion.

After receiving noise complaints Thursday from neighbors, Wang checked his home security cameras. He observed well over a dozen people inside and called the police, he told the Chronicle. “They were on the way to go there to stop them, but before we got there, the neighbor already sent us a message saying there was a shooting,” said Wang, 58. “When we arrived there, the police were already there.”

Airbnb did not respond to a request for comment from The Washington Post, but told local media that the host did not authorize Thursday’s party. The company said it had removed the listing from the site due to the investigation and banned the person who rented the home.

“We are horrified by this tragedy and are in close communication with Chief David Cook of Orinda Police to offer our support with his investigation into who committed this senseless violence,” Airbnb spokesperson Ben Breit told the Mercury News.

Cellphone footage compiled by local media captured a house packed with people in costumes dancing and mingling, then running for cover as gunfire rang out out.

A neighbor told KRON4 that he had heard “a bunch of gun shots” before he saw and heard “people screaming and fleeing down the hill.”

Footage from the ABC News affiliate showed victims limping from the deadly party and weeping in the street, while paramedics loaded a stretcher into an ambulance. Other witnesses told NBC Bay Area that the party had been attended by many college students.