Grandson of Man Who Shot Ralph Yarl Says He Was into ‘Racist’ Conspiracy Theories: ‘QAnon-Level’ – PEOPLE
A grandson of the man who shot Ralph Yarl after the teen accidentally rang the wrong doorbell while trying to pick up his younger siblings from the shooter’s Kansas City, Mo., house, says his grandfather demonstrated “racist tendencies” in front of him.
Speaking with CNN’s Don Lemon, shooter Andrew D. Lester’s grandson Klint Ludwig said he was “disgusted” to learn his grandfather shot Ralph, a Black 16-year-old, on the evening of April 13.
He said his 84-year-old grandfather is among a segment of people who believe in conspiracy theories and promulgated by the far right wing.
“The conspiracies and weird, random racist things they say, it doesn’t make sense, but they’re just scared,” Ludwig said.
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Ludwig said Lester regularly consumed news from conservative outlets, which he accused of reinforcing “this negative view of minority groups,” and drilling “Q-Anon-level conspiracies about election denying” into its viewers.
Ludwig told CNN his liberal views clashed with that of his grandfather’s, so the pair lost touch.
However, another grandson of Lester’s told The New York Times that Ludwig’s claims were false.
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“These people are not close to him like I am,” Daniel Ludwig said.
He described Lester as someone who “spoiled” loved ones and was “literally too nice.”
Lester pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree assault and armed criminal action in connection with the shooting of Ralph, which sparked nationwide outrage, PEOPLE previously reported.
He was released on bond Wednesday and is due back in court June 1.
Meanwhile, Ralph, an honors student who was a section leader in his high school band and had dreams of attending Texas A&M University, is now recovering at home, his attorney Lee Merritt said.
“Ralph is a WALKING MIRACLE with a head of steel,” Merritt announced on Instagram.
