Editor Says He Received Card Police Believe Was Sent By Capital Gazette Gunman
NORFOLK, Va. (WJZ/AP) — A man accused of fatally shooting five people at a Maryland newsroom is believed to have mailed a letter on the day of the rampage to a Virginia journalist he harassed for years and unsuccessfully sued, police and the journalist said Thursday.
Just over a week since the heinous attack on the Capital Gazette newsroom, police are learning more about Jarred Ramos and his actions leading up to the monstrous attack.
Last Thursday, police say Ramos blasted his way into the Capital Gazette newsroom with the objective of "killing every person present."
Five staffers were killed before officers could halt the bloodshed.
The Norfolk Police Department confirmed to WJZ that they believe the 38-year-old Maryland resident wrote a letter before the shooting to a former editor for the Capital Gazette, Eric Hartley, who now works at the Virginian Pilot that was dated June 28.
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Hartley received the unsigned card and compact disc Thursday and turned it over to police.
According to our media partner The Baltimore Sun, Hartley said it was a congratulatory card and said "Smile, you're on camera"-- adding: "It's your big day. All eyes are on you."
"We believe it's from him. We believe the letter came from him, but it's going to take some analysis to determine if he actually sent the letter over," said Daniel Hudson, public information officer for the Norfolk Police Department.
Ramos is accused of harassing Hartley for quite some time. The editor was mentioned in a defamation lawsuit back in 2012 that was filed by Ramos, alleging that he was defamed in an article about his conviction in a criminal harassment case in 2011. Although it was thrown out, the threats from Ramos continued.
One tweet on Ramos' Twitter account before it was taken down read: "Eric Hartley knows from experience, but doesn't appreciate how bad it can get. Journalist hell awaits."
A long-standing feud with the paper that dragged on for years ended in a nightmare.
Police say the letter received Thursday was unsigned and anonymously sent. It was handed over from Norfolk Police to the FBI who then handed it off to Anne Arundel County investigators.
Earlier this week, police said Ramos had sent out threatening letters before the shooting to the Capital Gazette's former attorney and a Baltimore City judge, as well.
Police said they found Ramos hiding under a desk after the attack at The Capital and jailed him on five counts of first-degree murder.
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