Deadly shooting at US paper

A man with a long-standing grudge against a newspaper in the US city of Annapolis massacred five people, four of them journalists, as he blasted his way through its newsroom with a shotgun and smoke grenades in what police say was a "targeted attack." The suspect barricaded an exit so that employees could not escape, says a prosecutor.

The shooting at the Capital Gazette newspaper in Maryland, that also injured three others, was the deadliest day for US journalism since 9/11 terror attacks. The shooter identified as Jarrod Warren Ramos, 38, was charged with five counts of first-degree murder. "This was a targeted attack on the Capital Gazette. This person was prepared today to come in. He was prepared to shoot people. His intent was to cause harm," Anne Arundel County Deputy Police Chief William Krampf said.

Jarrod Ramos

The five persons killed are assistant editor Rob Hiaasen, editorial page editor Gerald Fischman, editor and reporter John McNamara, special publications editor Wendi Winters and sales assistant Rebecca Smith, police said. A few hours before the shooting, a profane tweet was posted to a Twitter account under Ramos' name. Ramos was taken into custody at the scene. He had damaged his finger tips in an apparent effort to thwart identification by law enforcement. County executive Steve Schuh said that the suspect was hiding under a desk in the building when police officers arrived at the scene. He said there was "no exchange of fire".

Defiant staff at The Capital have published a Friday edition after the shooting. Pics/AFP