Maryland: The gunman identified as Jarrod W. Ramos, who had reportedly shot five people and injured others Maryland’s Capital Gazette newsroom had a long history of antagonism towards the newspaper reveals Maryland’s Police.
The Police termed the attack as a “targeted attack” on a newspaper since Jarrod held a grudge for exposing him for stalking a woman on Facebook, Sputnik.com reported.
He launched the attack on the journalists on Thursday afternoon but was shortly arrested for his rampage by the Maryland Police.
The five victims that were shot dead were Identified as Wendi Winters, 65, who was special publications editor, Rebecca Smith, 34, was a sales assistant, Robert Hiaasen, 59, was an assistant editor while Gerald Fischman, 61, was a editorial page editor and John McNamara, 56 was a writer.
Police said the newspaper had received threats on social media prior to the attack.
According to the news sources, Ramos had unsuccessfully sued the newspaper and one of its former reporters in 2013 for defamation after the newspaper exposed him for stalking a woman.
Ramos was the subject of a 2011 article – titled ‘Jarrod wants to be your friend’ – after he pleaded guilty to criminal harassment which described him for threatening and harassing his former high school classmate.
Ramos had reportedly asked her former classmate to kill herself while harassing her with his repeated emails.
Responding to the newspaper publishing article on him, he sued the newspaper, the reporter who initially wrote about the case, a judge and the woman who testified against him but was upset over failing to prove his claims which was followed by Ramos harassing the newspapers journalists on Twitter.
The woman-victim who was harassed by Ramos told WBAL TV that she had previously warned an ex-police officer years ago that Ramos would ‘be young next mass shooter’ for harassing her for no personal reason.
Tom Marquardt, a retired publisher and top editor at the paper told that looking at Ramos history of escalating social media attacks against the newspaper, he had considered obtaining a restraining order against Ramos.
‘I was seriously concerned he would threaten us with physical violence,’ Marquardt said. ‘I even told my wife, ‘We have to be concerned. This guy could really hurt us.’ ‘
The police chief addressing the press conference late on Thursday said: :”This person was prepared today to come in, this person was prepared to shoot people. His intent was to cause harm.”
Phil Davis, a court and crime reporter for the Gazette tweeted ‘A single shooter shot multiple people at my office, some of whom are dead.’
“Gunman shot through the glass door to the office and opened fire on multiple employees. Can’t say much more and don’t want to declare anyone dead, but it’s bad.”
“There is nothing more terrifying than hearing multiple people get shot while you’re under your desk and then hear the gunman reload.”
Recalling the incident he says, he does not why Ramos suddenly stopped.
‘I’m a police reporter. I write about this stuff – not necessarily to this extent, but shootings and death – all the time,’ he said. ‘But as much as I’m going to try to articulate how traumatizing it is to be hiding under your desk, you don’t know until you’re there and you feel helpless,’ he said.
Over 170 people were evacuated from the newspaper building, many of whom were later interviewed as witnesses.