Airbnb is suing the user who earlier this month hosted an unauthorized party at a Sunnyvale home which resulted in a fatal shooting, the company announced on Tuesday.
The vacation rental platform notified the guest on Monday that it intends to pursue legal action, alleging that the user violated their community standards and terms of service agreement, and reserved the listing under false pretenses.
The unidentified guest has been banned from its service.
The lawsuit stems from a large party thrown at a single-story house in Sunnyvale's Raynor Park neighborhood on August 7, involving upwards of 200 mostly teenage guests. Eighteen-year-old Elias Elhania was shot and killed at the event, while another unidentified adult was injured.
Last year, Airbnb instituted a ban on holding gatherings of more than 16 people, and prohibited all parties and other disruptive events. The updated rules were announced following multiple highly publicized incidents at Airbnb properties, including a mass shooting in Orinda where five people died during Halloween in 2019.
The company also announced Tuesday it is implementing extra anti-party restrictions for this upcoming Halloween.
