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ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) – The man accused of killing five people in a Maryland newspaper was the subject of an investigation five years ago for a dam threatening tweets against staff but detective According to a police report released on Friday, the newspaper was afraid of "putting a stick in a hive".
The 2013 police report added to the emerging image. Jarrod W. Ramos, 38, a former information technology employee and longtime vindictive against the capital of Annapolis, has been charged with five counts of first degree murder in one of the Most deadly attacks on journalists from the history of the United States
says Ramos barricaded the back office exit to prevent anyone from escaping and methodically pioneered his way through the newsroom Thursday with a 12-gauge shotgun, shoot down a victim trying to slip in the back.
Three e A journalist and a salesman were killed.
"The comrade was there to kill as many people as he could," said Anne Arundel County Police Chief Timothy Altomare
Ramos, shaved close with long hair. his shoulders, he was deprived of bail in a short court appearance, assisted by video, carefully watching but saying nothing.
The authorities stated that he was "uncooperative" with the interrogators. He was placed under suicidal supervision in prison. Its public defenders have made no comment
The charges carry a maximum sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Maryland does not have the death penalty.
The bloodshed first raised fears that the recent wave of political attacks against "fake media" has exploded into violence. But according to all the testimonies, Ramos had a specific long-standing grievance against the newspaper.
President Donald Trump, who regularly calls reporters "liars" and "enemies of the people," said: "Journalists, like all Americans, should be free from the fear of being violently attacked. doing their job. "
Ramos had filed a defamation suit against the newspaper in 2012 after publishing an article accusing the plaintiff of harassing a woman. A judge later declared it unfounded. Ramos had repeatedly targeted staff members with angry and profane tweets.
"There is clearly a story out there," said the chief of police
Ramos has launched so many social attacks. 19659015] Altomare revealed on Friday that a detective investigated these concerns, holding a conference call with an editing house lawyer, a former correspondent and the newspaper's publisher.
The police report said that the lawyer was producing a wealth of tweets made mention of blood in the water, hell reporter, hitman, open season, happy that he was not there. There will be no lethal rampage, murder career. "
Detective, Michael Praley, said in the report that he" did not believe Mr. Ramos was a threat to employees, "noting that Ramos had not tried to enter in the building and had not sent "direct and threatening correspondence. "
" To date, the capital will not pursue any costs, "Praley wrote." It has been described as putting a stick in a hive that the representatives of Capital Newspaper do not want to do. "
Marquardt, the former publisher, said that he had spoken with the newspaper's lawyers to seek a restraining order. "
" We decided to take the side of doing nothing, "he said said Friday.
Later, in 2015, Ramos tweeted that he would like the newspaper to stop appearing, but "it would be more pleasant" to see two of his reporters "stop breathing." [19659020] Then Ramos "remained silent" for more than two years, says Marquardt.
"This led us to believe that he had moved on, but for some reason, he decided to resurrect his problem with The Capital yesterday, "said the former publisher." We do not know why. "
Police chief ad clared that new positions were created just before the killings, but the authorities have known that the & # 39; after.
Few details have been published about Ramos. is single, does not have children and lives in an apartment in Laurel, Maryland. He was employed by a computer contractor for the Bureau of Labor Statistics from the US Department of Labor from 2007 to 2014. A department representative stated:
The rampage began with a gunshot that broke the air. entrance to the open newsroom. Ramos carefully planned the attack, using "a tactical approach to hunt down and kill the innocent," said Attorney Wes Adams. He said that the shooter also had an escape plan, but that he would not elaborate.
Journalists crawled under the desks and searched for other hiding places, describing agonizing minutes of terror as they heard the shooter's footsteps and repeated explosions. He was huddled, trying not to breathe, trying not to make any noise, and he shot me around me, "said photographer Paul Gillespie, who plunged under an office, to the Baltimore Sun newspaper. He heard a colleague yelling, "No!" A gun explosion followed, he heard another colleague's voice, then another shot.
Some 300 officers arrived and started to "Ramos was hiding under a desk and did not exchange fire with the police."
Ramos was identified at the time of Ramos' arrest within two minutes, a quick response that "saved" lives, said Altomare. 39, using facial recognition technology because of what the police chief claimed to be a "delay." Police denied information that Ramos mutilated his fingertips to counteract his identification. [19659028TwoofficialstoldtheAssociatedPressThursdaynightaccordingtonewsreportspreliminaryevidencethattheshooterdeliberatelydamagedhisfingers"ShotgunwaslegallyboughtaboutayearagodespitehisguiltypleaintheharassmentcaseHealsocarriedsmokegrenadesaccordingtotheauthorities
Investigators review Ramos' messages on social media and search his apartment, where Altomare said he found evidence of planning the attack. The chef did not give details.
Among those killed were 59-year-old Rob Hiaasen, deputy editor of the newspaper and brother of the novelist Carl Hiaasen. Gerald Fischman, publisher of the editorial page, Wendi Winters, special projects editor, John McNamara, journalist, and Rebecca Smith, commercial assistant
The Annapolis city announced Friday night a vigil for victims on a plaza public near the State House. ] ____
Associate Journalists Eric Tucker in Washington; Michael Balsamo in Los Angeles; Michael Kunzelman in Annapolis; and Sarah Rankin and Denise Lavoie in Richmond, Virginia, contributed to this story, as did the AP News Research Center in New York.
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