UPDATE: Police have now entered the investigative phase and are in the process of securing the shooter’s Maryland residence and preparing for search warrants.

Staff at the offices said the suspect opened fire through a glass door into the newsroom. Four victims died at the scene and another died at a local hospital.

More than 170 people were evacuated from the building, which was home to several local newspapers and other businesses.

Bill Krampf, deputy police chief Anne Arundel county, told reporters: “There’s five fatalities that we know of. There’s several other persons that are gravely injured.”

Several people dead in shooting at newspaper building in US city of Annapolis in Maryland, officials confirm https://t.co/yVfjyyjOo6

— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) June 28, 2018

Police found the suspect hiding under a desk at the site and have apprehended him in custody and have now identified hm.

Earlier reports said he was not co-operating with authorities and had apparently taken measures to disfigure his fingerprints. He has been described as a white male in his late 30s.

The shooter used a “long gun” in the attack. Authorities also recovered what they initially believed was an explosive device at the scene, but it was later found to be canisters of smoke grenades.

Krampf also said the building had been “tactically secured” by a SWAT team and quick responders. It will remain closed to the public while criminal investigators scour the site. Officers from the Federal Bureau of Investigation are also on the scene.

Counterterroism units were closely monitoring the events but at present, the crime is not being treated as a terrorist attack.

Larry Hogan, Governor of Maryland, said: “It’s a tragic situation. We don’t have all the information yet, and we can’t give all the information yet, but we have had several fatalities. We thank the people that came in and kept it from being worse. The response time was incredible.”

Prior to departing Wisconsin, I was briefed on the shooting at Capital Gazette in Annapolis, Maryland. My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families. Thank you to all of the First Responders who are currently on the scene.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 28, 2018

Anne Arundel County Executive Steve Schuh was heartbroken over the shooting.

“Those fatalities are so sad,” he said. “I don’t know what to say other than our thoughts and prayers are with them and their families.”

US President Donald Trump has been briefed on the shooting. He tweeted: “My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families.”

“We are putting out a damn paper tomorrow”

Remarkably, staff at the paper are determined to keep working. Jimmy DeButts, editor of the Capital Gazette has outlined the passion he and his staff have for journalism and for serving the local community in a series of tweets.

We are there in times of tragedy. We do our best to share the stories of people, those who make our community better. Please understand, we do all this to serve our community.

— Jimmy DeButts (@jd3217) June 28, 2018

Devastated & heartbroken. Numb. Please stop asking for information/interviews. I’m in no position to speak, just know @capgaznews reporters & editors give all they have every day. There are no 40 hour weeks, no big paydays – just a passion for telling stories from our communty.

— Jimmy DeButts (@jd3217) June 28, 2018

Reporter Chase Cook wrote: “I can tell you this: We are putting out a damn paper tomorrow.”

I can tell you this: We are putting out a damn paper tomorrow.

— Chase Cook (@chaseacook) June 28, 2018

In the wake of the horrific events, the newspaper’s website published a story detailing how the paper is one of the oldest in the US, dating back some 134 years. Its origins go back even further as it evolved from an earlier paper which was established in 1727. It was also the first newspaper in the nation to be published by a woman.

Phil Davis, a courts and crime reporter at the Capital Gazette offered a harrowing commentary on the unfolding events.

There is nothing more terrifying than hearing multiple people get shot while you're under your desk and then hear the gunman reload

— Phil Davis (@PhilDavis_CG) June 28, 2018

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.

— Phil Davis (@PhilDavis_CG) June 28, 2018

Congressman Dutch Ruppersburger said the journalists at the paper “perform an invaluable community service,” and said he was praying for them.

Ongoing gun violence in the US

The Maryland attack was just the latest high-profile mass shooting in the country. On 14 February, 17 people were fatally shot at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida in an attack that sparked a youth-led movement to end gun violence. The Parkland shooting launched a youth-led movement for gun control.

On 22 April, four people were killed in a shooting at a Waffle House in Nashville, Tennessee.

Correction, 195. This is the 195th mass shooting this year. One hundred and ninety five communities shattered. Hundreds of beautiful lives cut short early. Thousands of lives changed forever.

This is intolerable.

— National School Walkout (@schoolwalkoutUS) June 28, 2018

The National School Walkout social media account tweeted that the Maryland shooting is the 195th instance of a mass shooting in the US this year.

Police officers were guarding the offices of the Baltimore Sun (the parent company of Capital Gazette) and media outlets in and around New York as a precautionary measure in the hours after the attack.