Maryland Shooting Update: Five Killed in 'Targeted Attack' on Capital Gazette Newspaper
A lone shooter barged into the Capital Gazette newsroom in Annapolis, Maryland on Thursday afternoon, June 28. By the time the gunman was subdued, five people were already killed by shotgun blasts, as of the latest update.
The attack, which began at about 2:40 p.m. local time, went on inside the Capital Gazette offices which one reporter called a "war zone" during the time the shooter was unloading on the news staff inside.
"This was a targeted attack on the Capital Gazette," Anne Arundel County Deputy Police Chief William Krampf said about the shooting, adding that the suspect has prepared for the day he would come in and shoot people in the news office.
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The suspect, which was arrested soon after the shooting, was identified as Jarrod W. Ramos. The 38-year-old gunman from Laurel is said to have a long-standing motive to go after the news outlet, according to the Baltimore Sun.
The five slain victims have also been identified as well. Rob Hiaasen, 59 years old, joined the paper as a columnist and assistant editor. 65-year-old Wendi Winters was the gazette's community correspondent, while 61-year-old Gerald Fischman was the editorial page editor.
John McNamara was a 56-year-old veteran staff writer who covered sports for the paper. The youngest of the fatalities, Rebecca Smith, was a 34-year old sales assistant who joined just last November.
Two more victims were injured as well, according to authorities. The Capital Gazette insisted that they are putting out a paper the next day as usual, despite the fatal incident.
Phil Davis, a Capital crime reporter who was in the office at the time of the shooting, took to social media to tweet about the incident as he and others hid under their desks. "Gunman shot through the glass door to the office and opened fire on multiple employees," he posted online as the shots rang off.
"Can't say much more and don't want to declare anyone dead, but it's bad," he added at the time.
