Man Pleads Guilty To Arson At Comet Ping Pong

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Source: the Daily Beast, via DCist

DEC 18, 12:24 PM

Man Pleads Guilty To Arson At Comet Ping Pong
Rachel Kurzius

A man pleaded guilty to setting a fire at Comet Ping Pong in January, in another attack on the Northwest pizzeria that appeared to be linked to debunked conspiracy theories. ... Under the plea deal, Ryan Jaselskis would go to prison for four years, and he pleaded guilty on Tuesday to two counts: arson and assault on a federal law enforcement officer, as first reported by the Daily Beast. (1) A judge still needs to approve of the plea deal, and sentencing is scheduled for March.

Jaselskis admitted to starting the January 23 fire at Comet Ping Pong during dinner, resulting in the evacuation of the pizzeria and the destruction of curtains. No one was injured during the fire, which an employee extinguished. Investigators found wooden matches and lighter fluid at the scene. They released video of the suspect--a white male in his 20s-to-mid-30s wearing a blue jacket with white sleeves and red trim.
....

While prosecutors haven't revealed a motive for Jaselskis setting the fire at Comet Ping Pong, NBC News found a video posted to the YouTube account of Jaselski's parents about an hour before the arson at Comet Ping Pong that stated that "the world is run by a Satanic global pedophile ring fronted by most major celebrities and Hillary Clinton."

This is all part of the dubious Pizzagate hoax, which caused ongoing death threats, harassment, and more at Comet Ping Pong beginning shortly before the 2016 election. (2) Conspiracy theorists believed the popular restaurant’s basement is a site of an underground satanic sex ring, despite the fact that Comet doesn’t even have a basement. In December 2016, an armed man stormed into the pizzeria, later telling police he wanted to rescue the children he erroneously believed were imprisoned inside. When the man found no evidence of trafficked children inside, he surrendered himself to police.

(1) https://www.thedailybeast.com/accused-pizzagate-arsonist-pleads-guilty-to-setting-fire-at-dc-pizzeria

(2) https://dcist.com/story/16/12/05/what-on-earth-is-pizzagate-why-did/

Read more: https://dcist.com/story/19/12/18/man-pleads-guilty-to-arson-at-comet-ping-pong/

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We'll always have Comet Ping Pong.

DU, Sunday, December 4, 2016:

D.C. Police arrest suspect with an assault rifle at Comet Ping Pong restaurant

https://upload.democraticunderground.com/10141631586

Fake news, real bullets: Suspect with rifle arrested at DC restaurant named in Pizzagate story

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10028331700

-- -- -- -- --

Thursday, February 14, 2019:

A Man Has Been Charged With Trying To Burn Down The Restaurant At The Center Of The "Pizzagate" Cons

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10142266823

-- -- -- -- --

Saturday, January 26, 2019:

Arson suspected at DC restaurant associated with 'Pizzagate' conspiracy

https://www.democraticunderground.com/12011703

And so on.

[dewsgirl]

1. Sounds like QAnon, who knows so many wackos out there.

[Javaman]

3. more than you realize but not as many as you think....

just enough for them to be a giant pain in the ass.

[IronLionZion]

2. Good thing he's not a terrorist, and has no political or ideological views

a white male in his 20s-to-mid-30s wearing a blue jacket with white sleeves and red trim.

Red, white, and blue

ter·ror·ism
/ˈterəˌrizəm/
Learn to pronounce
noun
the unlawful use of violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims.

[JohnnyRingo]

4. Probably good for business.

I know if I were there I'd have to stop for a slice & selfies. I don't see them changing the name.