A Georgia man who had blamed the COVID-19 vaccine for making him depressed and suicidal has been identified as the shooter who opened fire late Friday on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention headquarters,

The alleged shooter killed a police officer and spread panic through the health agency and nearby Emory University.

"Kennedy is directly responsible for the villainization of CDC's workforce through his continuous lies about science and vaccine safety, which have fueled a climate of hostility and mistrust," one ex-employee wrote, according to the Associated Press news agency.