After a shooting at an Easter weekend house party at an Airbnb in Pittsburgh left two teenagers dead and eight others with gunshot wounds, Airbnb said it plans to take legal action against the person who had booked the party.
“Airbnb strictly prohibits parties, and we condemn behavior that allegedly caused this criminal gun violence and tragic loss of life,” spokesperson Ben Breit said in a statement emailed to The edge. The booking guest has been permanently banned from the platform, he said. The party was “unauthorized”, Breit added, and took place without the knowledge or consent of the property’s host.
Filming took place on Easter Sunday just after 12:30 p.m. according to Pittsburgh police. Some 200 people were at the party in the city’s East Allegheny neighborhood, and police said up to 50 bullets were fired inside, forcing some people to jump out of windows to escape. Security footage showed Pittsburgh police attended the party grounds around 11 p.m. in response to a noise complaint, but left after warning a person – who said he was the owner – to turn down the music, Pittsburgh City Paper reported.
In June 2019, Pittsburgh was the site of a Fatal shooting at Airbnb rental in the Hill District area of ββthe city, where two people were shot and killed.
Airbnb banned ‘party houses’ in November 2019 after five people died in a filming at a big Halloween party in a rental in California. His the policy prohibits gatherings of more than 16 people and stipulates that any proof of parties may incur a fee of $500. The policy includes a curfew from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. and restricts whole-house listings made by people under 25. Breit also pointed out that the company neighborhood support line where neighbors can report possible parties or party houses to the business.
Tuesday, The Pittsburgh City Council introduced a bill this would require short-term rental operators to be licensed by the city’s licensing department. Property owners should keep records of anyone who has entered the property and designate a contact person available to authorities in the event of an emergency.
Airbnb said Wednesday it is in close contact with Pittsburgh police and Mayor Ed Gainey’s office to support the investigation into the shooting. As of this writing, no arrests have been made.
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