Hate-filled threat targeting LGBTQ person could land California man in prison, feds say
A San Diego man faces up to five years in prison after sending a hate-filled, threatening email to an LGBTQ person, federal prosecutors in California said.
George Joseph Wellinger II, 49, pleaded guilty March 11 to interstate threatening communication, with the special finding that his victim was targeted due to her sexual orientation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California said in a news release.
Wellinger sent the email after the victim appeared in a news story about Laura Ann Carleton, a California business owner who was fatally shot in 2023 “for hanging a pride flag outside her store,” prosecutors said. Wellinger’s victim was interviewed by a news station about the crime, per the release.
In his email, Wellinger called the victim “another alphabet clown that wants to take a dirt nap, too” and said “we know what you look like and know where … you are,” prosecutors said.
He added that it was “only a matter of time.”
In a statement to McClatchy News on March 13, Wellinger’s attorney, Stefano Molea, said his client “has accepted full responsibility for his conduct and is sincerely remorseful for the harm his words have caused. He has, and will continue to take steps, with the help of professionals, towards remedying his wrongs and bettering himself.”
Wellinger is scheduled to be sentenced in June, according to prosecutors.
This story was originally published March 13, 2025 at 1:29 PM with the headline "Hate-filled threat targeting LGBTQ person could land California man in prison, feds say."
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