By Stephanie Burke

New York– Eight people were wounded and two were killed in a shooting at the Empire State Building this morning.  Around 9am the gunmen, identified as Jeffrey Johnson 53, entered the building. Apparently Johnson had been laid off recently and returned to the building this morning where he shot and killed a former co-worker before turning the gun on the crowd.

A nearby construction worker spotted Johnson and alerted authorities.  Johnson, using a .45-caliber semi-automatic handgun, then fired on police.  The police returned fire, killing him.  Witnesses said police shot Johnson at least three times.  Johnson had worked at Hazan imports as a designer of women’s accessories.

The White House said top aides informed President Barack Obama about the shooting around 9:30 a.m. Authorities said the shooting does not appear to be linked to terrorism.