KANNAPOLIS, N.C. – A man involved in the notorious “Pizzagate” incident in 2016, where he fired a gun inside a restaurant in Washington, D.C., was shot and killed by North Carolina police during a weekend traffic stop. Edgar Maddison Welch, a resident of Salisbury, was a passenger in a vehicle that was pulled over by officers in Kannapolis on Saturday night.
The Kannapolis Police Department reported that Welch, who had an outstanding felony warrant for a probation violation, pulled out a handgun and aimed it at one of the officers when they approached the vehicle to make an arrest. Despite being ordered to drop the weapon, Welch did not comply, leading two officers to fire at him in self-defense.
Welch’s actions in 2016 were driven by the false online conspiracy theory known as “Pizzagate,” which alleged that prominent Democrats were involved in a child sex trafficking ring operating out of a pizza restaurant. Welch traveled from North Carolina to Comet Ping Pong restaurant in Washington armed with an assault rifle. He fired shots inside the establishment before realizing the theory was baseless and surrendering peacefully.
After pleading guilty to charges related to the incident in 2017, Welch was sentenced to four years in prison by Judge Kentaji Brown Jackson, who is now a Supreme Court Justice. Annette Privette Keller, communications director for the City of Kannapolis, confirmed Welch’s identity in connection to the “Pizzagate” case.
The shooting of Welch is currently under investigation by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, with the officers involved placed on administrative leave as per protocol. The incident serves as a grim reminder of the impact of misinformation and conspiracy theories, highlighting the dangers of individuals acting on false beliefs.