News

Man arrested for stabbing co-worker at cloud data company in Palo Alto

Physical confrontation leads to chase at Rubrik's headquarters on Page Mill Road

A man suspected of stabbing his co-worker with a knife during a confrontation on Wednesday afternoon at Rubrik, a cloud data management company in Palo Alto, has been booked into jail, police said in a press release.

The stabbing at the company's headquarters at 1001 Page Mill Road was reported to police around 2:20 p.m. and officers detained the alleged attacker, 21-year-old Lionel Munoz of Milpitas, about five minutes later without further incident, according to a press release issued Wednesday night.

Investigators learned there was a physical confrontation between Munoz and his co-worker, both outside contractors, inside the mailroom. In a surprise attack, Munoz allegedly stabbed the co-worker from behind and chased him outside of the building, police said.

The injured employee fled back to the building where another employee locked the door to stop Munoz from causing further harm, according to police.

Officers assigned to the scene found Munoz in the company's parking lot where he was holding a knife and placed him in custody, police said.

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The employee targeted in the attack was stabbed multiple times, according to Rubrik employee Derek Kwan, who was not involved in the incident. The injured man was able to wave to people as an ambulance crew took him away on a gurney, according to Kwan.

The injured employee is undergoing treatment for multiple stab wounds and is expected to survive, the press release states. No other employees were injured and no one else is suspected of involvement in the incident.

Munoz was booked into Santa Clara County Man Jail in San Jose on suspicion of attempted murder. He will be held without bail, according to the county's online inmate locator database.

Investigators are looking into a motive for the stabbing, police said.

On Wednesday afternoon, police crime tape blocked access to a parking lot and an outdoor plaza between two buildings where one witness told the Weekly the stabbing occurred.

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Numerous police and fire department vehicles responded to the scene in the 1000 block of Page Mill Road near Hanover Street in the Stanford Research Park. Several businesses are in the area, including Morgan Stanley Wealth Management and Hewlett-Packard Enterprise, where access to one of the company's buildings across the street from the incident appeared to be blocked.

About two dozen people were standing outside of the buildings before 3 p.m. while others in vehicles were directed off the campus. No streets were blocked in the area.

"It's an evolving situation," said a Rubrik executive who declined to give his name.

Rubrik didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on the stabbing on Wednesday.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

Follow Palo Alto Online and the Palo Alto Weekly on Twitter @paloaltoweekly, Facebook and on Instagram @paloaltoonline for breaking news, local events, photos, videos and more.

Man arrested for stabbing co-worker at cloud data company in Palo Alto

Physical confrontation leads to chase at Rubrik's headquarters on Page Mill Road

by Palo Alto Weekly staff / Palo Alto Weekly

Uploaded: Wed, Dec 11, 2019, 3:11 pm
Updated: Wed, Dec 11, 2019, 11:08 pm

A man suspected of stabbing his co-worker with a knife during a confrontation on Wednesday afternoon at Rubrik, a cloud data management company in Palo Alto, has been booked into jail, police said in a press release.

The stabbing at the company's headquarters at 1001 Page Mill Road was reported to police around 2:20 p.m. and officers detained the alleged attacker, 21-year-old Lionel Munoz of Milpitas, about five minutes later without further incident, according to a press release issued Wednesday night.

Investigators learned there was a physical confrontation between Munoz and his co-worker, both outside contractors, inside the mailroom. In a surprise attack, Munoz allegedly stabbed the co-worker from behind and chased him outside of the building, police said.

The injured employee fled back to the building where another employee locked the door to stop Munoz from causing further harm, according to police.

Officers assigned to the scene found Munoz in the company's parking lot where he was holding a knife and placed him in custody, police said.

The employee targeted in the attack was stabbed multiple times, according to Rubrik employee Derek Kwan, who was not involved in the incident. The injured man was able to wave to people as an ambulance crew took him away on a gurney, according to Kwan.

The injured employee is undergoing treatment for multiple stab wounds and is expected to survive, the press release states. No other employees were injured and no one else is suspected of involvement in the incident.

Munoz was booked into Santa Clara County Man Jail in San Jose on suspicion of attempted murder. He will be held without bail, according to the county's online inmate locator database.

Investigators are looking into a motive for the stabbing, police said.

On Wednesday afternoon, police crime tape blocked access to a parking lot and an outdoor plaza between two buildings where one witness told the Weekly the stabbing occurred.

Numerous police and fire department vehicles responded to the scene in the 1000 block of Page Mill Road near Hanover Street in the Stanford Research Park. Several businesses are in the area, including Morgan Stanley Wealth Management and Hewlett-Packard Enterprise, where access to one of the company's buildings across the street from the incident appeared to be blocked.

About two dozen people were standing outside of the buildings before 3 p.m. while others in vehicles were directed off the campus. No streets were blocked in the area.

"It's an evolving situation," said a Rubrik executive who declined to give his name.

Rubrik didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on the stabbing on Wednesday.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

Comments

Julie armitano
Palo Alto Hills
on Dec 11, 2019 at 3:59 pm
Julie armitano, Palo Alto Hills
on Dec 11, 2019 at 3:59 pm

That's don't good.


Gus L.
Barron Park
on Dec 11, 2019 at 4:49 pm
Gus L., Barron Park
on Dec 11, 2019 at 4:49 pm
Not funny
Registered user
College Terrace
on Dec 11, 2019 at 5:12 pm
Not funny, College Terrace
Registered user
on Dec 11, 2019 at 5:12 pm

[Post removed due to deletion of referenced comment.]


Gus. L
Barron Park
on Dec 11, 2019 at 5:16 pm
Gus. L, Barron Park
on Dec 11, 2019 at 5:16 pm
Resident
Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Dec 11, 2019 at 5:45 pm
Resident, Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Dec 11, 2019 at 5:45 pm

Thank you PAPD for dealing with this efficiently and effectively.

Thankfully this bad guy did not have a gun and neither did anybody else who could be called a "good guy" with a gun. A gun in this situation would have definitely lead to death of at least the victim, possibly others, and likely the bad guy too.

I wish a speedy recovery to the victim with non-life threatening injuries.


Rbk1000
Palo Alto Hills
on Dec 11, 2019 at 6:10 pm
Rbk1000, Palo Alto Hills
on Dec 11, 2019 at 6:10 pm
Shawn
Crescent Park
on Dec 11, 2019 at 6:23 pm
Shawn, Crescent Park
on Dec 11, 2019 at 6:23 pm

@not funny - I suggest you educate yourself a little on firearms before you spread fake news.


concerned
Barron Park
on Dec 11, 2019 at 6:58 pm
concerned, Barron Park
on Dec 11, 2019 at 6:58 pm
Sorry2hear
Duveneck/St. Francis
on Dec 11, 2019 at 7:00 pm
Sorry2hear, Duveneck/St. Francis
on Dec 11, 2019 at 7:00 pm

[Portion removed.]

In Switzerland everyone has a real military assault weapon at home. It’s their militia system. It’s a very safe country, with occasional violence when a crazy acts out and kills people. Culture and bad guys are the problem, as well as educating our citizens to that fact. Banning stuff is a nanny state knee jerk reaction.

If someone wants to kill a lot of people, there are unfortunately a lot of ways to do that. I’m glad the victim in this case, will recover.


Rbk
Duveneck/St. Francis
on Dec 11, 2019 at 7:27 pm
Rbk , Duveneck/St. Francis
on Dec 11, 2019 at 7:27 pm
Funk Plunker
another community
on Dec 11, 2019 at 8:50 pm
Funk Plunker, another community
on Dec 11, 2019 at 8:50 pm

This makes me sad.


Common sense
Mayfield
on Dec 11, 2019 at 9:04 pm
Common sense, Mayfield
on Dec 11, 2019 at 9:04 pm
Randomizer
Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Dec 11, 2019 at 9:56 pm
Randomizer, Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Dec 11, 2019 at 9:56 pm

@Sorry2hear -- Web Link

You're oversimplifying the Swiss situation.

"Switzerland has a comprehensive gun-control regime that is governed by federal law and implemented by the cantons. This regime may be somewhat less restrictive than that of other European countries, yet since 2008 it has complied with European Union requirements. The Swiss Weapons Act requires an acquisition license for handguns and a carrying license for the carrying of any permitted firearm for defensive purposes. Exceptions exist for hunters. Automatic weapons are banned.

Swiss militiamen may keep their issued personal weapon in their home. A popular referendum to prohibit this practice was rejected in February 2011."

and, "The Weapons Act contains a comprehensive regime for the licensing of the acquisition and carrying of permitted weapons; the banning of certain weapons, including automatic firearms; and the production and trade in weapons, including the reporting obligations of dealers and a registration system that covers all privately owned guns, including those acquired by inheritance, but not including hunting rifles. The federal Weapons Act is implemented by the cantons and the cantons also keep registers of privately owned guns. The provisions on ammunition are in keeping with the principles of the Act, which aims to deter abuse while permitting lawful gunownership.[43]"


pinball
Registered user
Greenmeadow
on Dec 11, 2019 at 10:46 pm
pinball, Greenmeadow
Registered user
on Dec 11, 2019 at 10:46 pm

@Sorry2hear Of course, almost no one is allowed to carry a gun in Switzerland unless their job involves security. You can transport for hunting or target shooting. Anyhow, there are a lot of regulations around firearms there and it is a small, more orderly society. In general, more guns == more death by guns. Pretty simple. It's a lot harder to do a mass attack with a knife and your odds of survival are higher.


Rolling Eyes
Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Dec 11, 2019 at 11:20 pm
Rolling Eyes, Another Palo Alto neighborhood
on Dec 11, 2019 at 11:20 pm
Prop47
Midtown
on Dec 12, 2019 at 12:13 am
Prop47, Midtown
on Dec 12, 2019 at 12:13 am

Is that just a misdemeanor in California if the medical bills are less than $950?


Mohammad
Old Palo Alto
on Dec 12, 2019 at 7:28 am
Mohammad, Old Palo Alto
on Dec 12, 2019 at 7:28 am

[Post removed; off topic.]


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