Five people were shot and killed by a gunman at the Capital Gazette building in Annapolis, Maryland on Wednesday, the Anne Arundel County Police Department said. Others were injured. The shooter was identified as Jarrod Ramos.
The investigation remains ongoing.
Gazette employees both on and off the premises gave updates on Twitter. Outlet intern Andrew Messenger wrote a tweet asking for help amid the shooting.
After the shooting, reporter Phil Davis wrote on Twitter that he was waiting to be interviewed by police.
“A single shooter shot multiple people at my office, some of whom are dead,” he wrote. The gunman shot through the glass door to the office, and opened fire on multiple employees, according to Davis.
“Can’t say much more and don’t want to declare anyone dead, but it’s bad,” he wrote, and added, “There is nothing more terrifying than hearing multiple people get shot while you’re under your desk and then hear the gunman reload.”
Gazette reporter Chase Cook said he was not at the scene when the shooting occurred. He did some reporting in a tweet thread starting at 5:52 p.m., hours before Ramos was named.
“Police said about 170 people were in the building and evacuated. My colleague, @PhilDavis_CG was in the building and said he heard the shooter reload,” he wrote. “Suspect used a long gun and something thought to be explosive was disposed of.”
Bestgate Road remained closed as police continued the investigation.
“My colleague Josh McKerrow is uploading footage that should be on our site soon,” Cook wrote. “Gov. Larry Hogan and County Executive Steve Schuh both here and addressed media.”
He said another media briefing was planned for 8 p.m., and he didn’t know much else, including the motive behind the shooting.
Note: This article has been rewritten to reflect available information. We removed a line referencing a law enforcement official in a CBS report, who said that the suspect damaged his fingertips in an apparent attempt to avoid identification. Anne Arundel County Police Department Chief Timothy J. Altomare said at a June 29 press conference that this was not the case. There had only been a lag in identifying the suspect using his fingerprints.
[Screengrab via CBSN]