American man, Edgar Maddison Welch, infamously known as the “Pizzagate” gunman, was fatally shot earlier this week by North Carolina police during a traffic stop, authorities confirmed on Thursday.
Welch gained notoriety in 2016 when he stormed a Washington D.C. pizza restaurant at the center of the baseless “Pizzagate” conspiracy theory, which falsely alleged that Democratic officials were operating a child sex-trafficking ring there.
Welch, armed with an assault rifle and a revolver, had driven from his North Carolina home to confront what he believed was a sinister operation involving Hillary Clinton.
His actions at the Comet Ping Pong pizzeria led to his arrest and a four-year prison sentence for assault with a dangerous weapon and transporting firearms across state lines.
The recent incident occurred Saturday night when an officer in Kannapolis, North Carolina, recognized Welch’s vehicle and initiated a traffic stop.
Welch, 36, was wanted for a felony probation violation. According to police, when the officer opened the car door to arrest him, Welch pulled a firearm.
Officers ordered him to drop the weapon, but he refused, prompting two officers to shoot him.
Welch was taken to a nearby hospital but succumbed to his injuries two days later.
The Communications Director for Kannapolis, Annette Privette Keller, confirmed Welch’s connection to the “Pizzagate” case.
None of the officers involved, nor the vehicle’s other occupants, were injured during the encounter.
The officers who discharged their weapons have been placed on administrative leave as an investigation into the shooting continues.
This marks the violent conclusion to a conspiracy theory that fueled one of the most notorious falsehoods in modern political history.
The “Pizzagate” theory falsely claimed that Hillary Clinton and her 2016 presidential campaign manager were involved in a satanic child-trafficking ring operating out of Comet Ping Pong.
The conspiracy stemmed from leaked emails, misinterpreted as “coded messages” by conspiracy theorists, which were in reality discussions about a political fundraiser.
In 2016, Welch entered the restaurant armed, causing panic as families and children fled.
After searching the premises and finding no evidence of the alleged ring, Welch fired a single shot into a closet door but caused no injuries.
Following his arrest, Welch admitted he had acted on faulty information from extremist websites and social media, telling The New York Times, “The intel on this was not 100 percent. I just wanted to do some good and went about it the wrong way.”
The restaurant’s owner, James Alefantis, described the fallout of the conspiracy at the time, “From this insane, fabricated conspiracy theory, we’ve come under constant assault. I’ve done nothing for days but try to clean this up and protect my staff and friends from being terrorized,” he told The New York Times.
The incident and Welch’s eventual death underline the destructive power of unfounded conspiracy theories, which continue to pose risks to individuals and communities.
