Official statements from the Kannapolis Police Department or legal proceedings

'Pizzagate' Gunman Edgar Maddison Welch Fatally Shot by Police in Kannapolis, North Carolina

Jan 10, 2025, 12:45 AM

Edgar Maddison Welch, the man who infamously fired a rifle inside Washington, D.C.'s Comet Ping Pong pizzeria in 2016, was fatally shot by police in Kannapolis, North Carolina, on Saturday during a traffic stop. Authorities reported that Welch pulled a gun on two officers during the stop, prompting them to open fire. Welch had previously served a prison sentence for his 2016 attack on Comet Ping Pong, which he carried out under the false belief stemming from the debunked 'Pizzagate' conspiracy theory that claimed a child sex trafficking ring was operating beneath the restaurant.