Police in Washington, DC, on Sunday arrested a 28-year-old man armed with an assault rifle outside a popular bar that has become the subject of a popular alt-right conspiracy theory known as "pizzagate."
DC police responded to a call at 2:59 p.m. ET from a witness who said they saw a man armed with an assault rifle had entered Comet Ping Pong, a bar and music venue in the upscale Friendship Heights neighborhood of Northwest Washington, department sources said.
DC police said in a
Shortly before 4 pm, police took Welch into custody after he left the bar. He was charged with assault with a dangerous weapon.
Police said that Welch admitted that "he came to self-investigate 'Pizzagate' (a fictitious online conspiracy theory)."
Although police brought in the bomb squad, sources said it was a precautionary measure and the suspect did not specifically say he had a bomb.
Comet Ping Pong has found itself at the center of a conservative conspiracy theory stemming from emails released by Wikileaks during the presidential election.
The convoluted theory alleges that Democratic operatives who ordered pizza from the bar were, in fact, speaking in code about procuring underage prostitutes, and also involves accusations of occult activity.
There is no evidence that the bar, its owners or staff have engaged in sex trafficking of any kind, or any sort of occult rituals. Nevertheless, the owners and bands that have played there have come under attack from internet trolls.
Police are currently investigating phone calls and death threats against the bar, but it was not immediately clear whether there was a connection between Sunday's arrest and the conspiracy theory.