Feds: Upset by Google, man threw Molotov cocktails at Street View car near HQ

An Oakland, California, man now faces federal arson charges after he was accused of separate instances of throwing Molotov cocktails at Google Street View cars and other vehicles parked near Google headquarters.

No one was injured in the attacks, but one of the cars involved was destroyed. According to the criminal complaint against Raul Diaz, this was a self-driving car, but a Google spokesperson told Ars the damaged vehicle was not self-driving. (We're awaiting further clarification).

According to an affidavit written by Michael Nuttall, a special agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the attacks began in May. The Mountain View Police Department first responded to a reported incident of arson at a Google building on May 19, 2016. There, two broken Blue Moon beer bottles were found, one with the wick still intact. A Street View vehicle appears to have been targeted, but it was undamaged.

On June 4, 2016 at about 10:30pm, another Google employee reported gunshots at a building near where the first incident took place. Six days later at around 2am, police again responded to an arson—and found a car that had been destroyed by fire.

Another 11 days later on June 15, Google security, police, and ATF officials met to discuss the case, and they were able to identify a common vehicle seen in security footage from all of the incidents: a 2004 or 2005 Volkswagen Touareg.

Late last month on June 30, police were called in after midnight to investigate a suspicious vehicle—a 2004 Touareg. As Google security began to follow the car, it began taking “evasive maneuvers.” When the MVPD arrived, officers noticed the car was speeding and pulled it over. They observed a gun case and what appeared to be a pipe bomb. Police then detained the driver, Raul Diaz.

Soon after, Diaz was read his Miranda rights and interviewed by ATF agents, where he mentioned “Google, Facebook, and Larry Page” before he stopped talking and requested an attorney.

However, when MVPD officers went into the interview room to obtain some “administrative details,” Diaz said he no longer wished to have an attorney present. He wanted to speak again, so those officers then re-Mirandized Diaz.

As Nuttall continued:

Under Miranda, Diaz admitted to committing the two arsons and shooting into the Google building. Diaz said he intended on shooting into another Google building before being stopped by MVPD on 6/30/16. Diaz advised officers that he had a .22 caliber handgun in the gray Volkswagen. He was unsure if the gun was loaded, but he said he had ammunition at his home. Diaz told officers that his motivation behind the attacks was that he felt Google was watching him and that made him upset. Diaz said that he kept journals of the times that he felt Google had been watching him. He also confirmed he lives at 1317 92nd Avenue in Oakland. Diaz said that he has a laptop computer and a tablet in his room. Diaz said the cylindrical device in his vehicle was not a bomb. He said it was a tube filled with cotton and bullets. Diaz claimed it was a target he used for target practice, even though the bomb squad advised it would be a fully functioning explosive device as soon as an accelerant or explosive powder was put into it.

Diaz’s attorney, federal public defender Varell Laphalle Fuller, did not respond to Ars’ request for comment.

Diaz is set to appear before a federal judge in San Jose, California, for a detention hearing on Friday at 1:30pm. If found guilty, the Oakland defendant could face up to 20 years in prison.