The Latest: Armed man who searched restaurant comes to court

WASHINGTON – The Latest on a man who fired an assault weapon in a pizza restaurant while investigating an internet conspiracy theory (all times local):

2:45 p.m.

A man who brought loaded guns to a family pizza parlour to investigate a fake news story about high-ranking Democratic officials trafficking children has made his first appearance in federal court in Washington.

The case of 28-year-old Edgar Maddison Welch of Salisbury, North Carolina, moved Tuesday from Superior Court in the District of Columbia to U.S. District Court, where he faces a charge of interstate transportation of a firearm with an intent to commit a crime. If convicted, he could spend up to 10 years in prison.

He appeared Tuesday afternoon before a magistrate, who set a preliminary hearing for Friday. The judge also review then whether Welch should continue to be held in custody. Welch has been in jail since the Dec. 4 shooting at Comet Ping Pong.

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11:30 a.m.

A North Carolina man who acted on an internet conspiracy theory by firing an assault weapon multiple times inside a pizza restaurant in the nation’s capital now faces a federal gun charge, prosecutors announced Tuesday.

Edgar Maddison Welch of Salisbury, North Carolina, is charged with interstate transportation of a firearm with intent to commit a crime, and local charges including assault with a dangerous weapon and property destruction have been dropped.

The federal charge carries a statutory maximum of 10 years in prison and potential financial penalties.

The 28-year-old Welch has been in jail since the Dec. 4 shooting at Comet Ping Pong, which was targeted by purveyors of fake news and falsely rumoured to be the site of a child sex trafficking ring run by prominent Democrats.

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9:50 a.m.

A North Carolina man who fired an assault weapon multiple times inside a pizza restaurant in the nation’s capital while investigating the internet conspiracy theory known as “pizzagate” will face federal charges.

Edgar Maddison Welch of Salisbury, North Carolina, appeared briefly in Superior Court in the District of Columbia on Tuesday.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Sonali Patel told a judge that prosecutors are dismissing the local charges because they have obtained a federal arrest warrant. Patel didn’t detail the federal charges. It’s not clear when Welch will appear in federal court.

The 28-year-old Welch has been in jail since the Dec. 4 shooting at Comet Ping Pong, which has been falsely rumoured to be the site of a child sex trafficking ring run by prominent Democrats.

Welch’s parents were in court, but declined to speak to a reporter.

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3:45 a.m.

A North Carolina man who fired an assault weapon multiple times inside a pizza restaurant in the nation’s capital while investigating an internet conspiracy theory is expected in court for a hearing on whether he should stay in jail while he awaits trial.

Edgar Maddison Welch of Salisbury, North Carolina, is expected in Superior Court in the District of Columbia on Tuesday. The 28-year-old Welch has been in jail since the Dec. 4 shooting at Comet Ping Pong, which has been falsely rumoured to be the site of a child sex trafficking ring run by prominent Democrats.

Police say Welch acknowledged coming to “self-investigate” the conspiracy theory and surrendered “when he found no evidence that underage children were being harboured in the restaurant.” No one was hurt.