Five dead as gunman attacks journalists
ANNAPOLIS, Maryland — A man who had a long-running feud with an Annapolis newspaper blasted his way through its newsroom with a shotgun on Thursday, killing at least five people in one of the deadliest attacks recorded on a US media outlet, authorities said.
The suspect fired through a glass door, looked for victims and then sprayed the newsroom of the Capital Gazette newspaper group in Annapolis with gunfire, police and a witness said.
Acting police chief of the Anne Arundel County Police Department William Krampf told a news conference that Capital Gazette assistant editor Rob Hiaasen, 59, was among the victims.
Wendi Winters, 65, Rebecca Smith, 34, Gerald Fischman, 61, and John McNamara were also killed, he said. Smith was a sales assistant and the others were journalists.
“This was a targeted attack on the Capital Gazette,” Krampf said. “This person was prepared to shoot people. His intent was to cause harm.”
The suspect is Jarrod Ramos, a 38-year- old white male of Laurel, the Capital Gazette and Baltimore Sun reported, citing law enforcement.
Anne Arundel County police said that due to investigative reasons, they have not released the name of the suspect in custody, adding that as of Thursday evening, the suspect has not been booked.
‘A war zone’
Phil Davis, a Capital Gazette crime reporter, said he was hiding under his desk along with other newspaper employees when the shooter stopped firing, the Capital Gazette reported on its website.
The newsroom looked “like a war zone”, he told the Baltimore Sun, adding, “I don’t know why he stopped.”
“There is nothing more terrifying than hearing multiple people get shot while you’re under your desk and then hear the gunman reload,” he said.
Police officers in the Maryland capital of Annapolis responded within 60 seconds to a 911 call about a shooting in progress and apprehended the suspect who was hiding under a desk, authorities said.
About 170 people were then evacuated from the building, which houses other offices, many leaving with their hands up as police and other emergency vehicles arrived.
Police are treating the shooting as a local incident, with no links to terrorism, a law enforcement source said. Krampf did not say why the gunman may have targeted the newspaper or its employees.
The suspect appeared to have damaged his fingertips to try to avoid detection and was refusing to cooperate with law enforcement, Baltimore, local media reported.
The attack prompted New York police to tighten security at news organizations in the nation’s media capital.
US President Donald Trump said: “My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families. Thank you to all of the first responders who are currently on the scene.”