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Man arrested following several attacks on Google offices

Man arrested following several attacks on Google offices

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A car was burned and shots were fired at a Google building in Mountain View, allegedly by a man who felt "Google was watching him and that made him upset," according to a police affidavit discovered by the Mercury News.

The attacks are believed to be part of a series of incidents that have taken place at Google offices since May, when on May 19th a Google employee reported someone throwing bottles modified into Molotov cocktails in a Google-owned parking lot. Then, on June 4th, Mountain View police discovered broken glass and holes in the windows at another Google building after reports of a shooting. CCTV footage from both scenes showed the same SUV at both attacks.

Then, on June 10th, an individual with a squirt gun — which police believe held gasoline or some other kind of flammable liquid — destroyed a Google self-driving car, according to the affidavit, though Google told The Verge that a self-driving car was not involved. It’s possible that it was a Google Street View car, as the vehicles have similar Google markings and equipment mounted to the roof.

Federal prosecutors have filed arson charges against 30-year old Raul Murillo Diaz in connection with the May 19th attack, and investigators are looking to tie Diaz to the other two incidents. He was arrested by Mountain View police on June 30 during a traffic stop near Google headquarters. They found a weapons case and materials to assemble a pipe bomb in his SUV.