Five deaths have been confirmed and multiple people have been injured in the Thursday shooting at The Capital Gazette newspaper office in Annapolis, Maryland.
Joel McCord has been at the scene and told Morning Edition host Nathan Sterner what he's learning about the incident.
The victims
Pictured from top left: Wendi Winters, John McNamara, Gerald Fischman, Rebecca Smith, and Rob Hiaasen.
Winters, McNamara, Fischman and Hiaasen wrote for the paper, and Smith was a sales assistant.
You can read about them and their work here.
The suspect
The shooter has been identified as 38-year-old Jarrod Ramos of Laurel, Maryland. He is facing 5 counts of first-degree murder and his bail hearing was scheduled for Friday at 10:30 a.m. in Annapolis.
A 2011 column in the paper reported on his harassment of a woman on social media. Ramos sued the paper for defamation in 2012 but the suit was dimissed. Lt. Ryan Frashure, the Anne Arundel County Police Department spokesman said "It was apparent that this individual had a vendetta against The Capital newspaper and they were specifically targeted." The attacker threatened the paper on social media as recently as Thursday.
Ramos was captured in the building that houses The Capital Gazette offices shortly after the shooting started.
Information from the Anne Arundel County Police Department
Speaking at their Thursday evening press conference, officials confirmed this information:
- The suspect entered the building with a shotgun and looked for his victims as he walked through the lower level.
- The suspect entered the building with a canister of smoke grenades.
- 170 people were evacuated out of the building located at 888 Bestgate Road. Several businesses are located inside the property. Police say the building will be secured for some time. WYPR's Dominique Maria Bonessi spoke with some of the evacuees.
Stay updated
- Anne Arundel County Police Department Twitter @AACOPD
- Capital Gazette Twitter @capgaznews
- WYPR Twitter @WYPR881FM
The Anne Arundel County Police Department has set up a phone line for family and friends seeking information regarding the incident at 410-768-5522.
