US Newsroom Shooting Was 'Targeted Attack': Police

A shooting at a newsroom in the US city of Annapolis that left five dead Thursday was described by police as a "targeted attack" that came after the organization received threats over social media.

"This was a targeted attack on the Capital Gazette," Bill Krampf, acting police chief of Anne Arundel county, told reporters during a briefing.

He said that police did not yet know the shooter's motive but: "We know that there were threats sent to the Gazette through social media."

"We're trying to confirm what account that was and we're trying to confirm who actually sent them," Krampf said.

Krampf said that the threats did not appear to target an individual but rather the media outlet as a whole, adding "they indicated violence."

The attacker, who was previously identified as a white male, was described as being in his "late thirties" and a resident of Maryland.

Krampf added the attacker had used canisters of smoke grenades while entering the office building and "was prepared today to come in."