• by Erik Sass , Staff Writer, December 5, 2016

While it’s a matter of debate whether fake online news influenced the outcome of the 2016 presidential election, bogus “journalism” definitely poses some real dangers – especially when guns are involved. And yes, it really is happening: Over the weekend, fake news resulted in a shooting incident in Washington, D.C., thankfully with no casualties.

On Sunday a 28-year-old man from Salisbury, N.C., Edgar Maddison Welch, armed himself with an assault rifle, a shotgun and a handgun and walked into the Comet Ping Pong pizza restaurant in the Chevy Chase neighborhood of northwest Washington. After speaking to an employee, Welch discharged his rifle once inside the restaurant, and was apprehended about 45 minutes later after a standoff with police, who surrounded the restaurant.

Welch told police that he went to the restaurant to “self-investigate” reports that it was at the center of a child sex slave ring maintained by Hillary Clinton and her campaign chief. Fake news stories alleging the existence of such a cabal circulated online during the presidential campaign — one of a number of such articles accusing Clinton, her husband, and various allies of involvement with pedophile gangs.

According to the Washington Post, which first reported the news, the Comet Ping Pong restaurant and a number of other neighboring establishments have received death threats prompted by the made-up articles (some of which implicated adjacent businesses, supposedly connected to the child sex slave ring in Comet by hidden tunnels).

Comet owner James Alefantis released a statement condemning the incident and highlighting the risks posed by fake news: “What happened today demonstrates that promoting false and reckless conspiracy theories comes with consequences. I hope that those involved in fanning these flames will take a moment to contemplate what happened here today, and stop promoting these falsehoods right away.”