Vasillios Pistolis was 19 at the time of the march. He was later ousted from the Marines for his involvement. ANorth Carolina man who once bragged about attacking a prominent left-wing activist has become the latest person charged in Albemarle County for his participation in the torch-carrying mob of White supremacists that marched across University of Virginia Grounds back in 2017. Vasillios George Pistolis, who was 19 at the time of the hundreds-strong march, turned himself in for arrest Sept. 5 after he was charged with using fire to racially intimidate, according to Albemarle County Circuit Court records. (…) The charge against Pistolis marks the 12th confirmed prosecution under the administration of Albemarle County Commonwealth’s Attorney Jim Hingeley, who successfully campaigned on prosecuting the 2017 marchers who shouted “Jews will not replace us” as they made their way through UVa and ultimately came to blows with counterprotesters at the base of a statue of Founding Father Thomas Jefferson. (…) However, Pistolis does have a troubled history in the Marine Corps. His 2017 visit to Charlottesville and his affiliation with Atomwaffen led the Corps, in which he was then serving as a lance corporal, to initiate a court martial that demoted him to the rank of private, forced him to forfeit two thirds of a month’s pay and confined him for 28 days. Under its Prohibited Activities and Conduct Prevention and Response Policy, the Corps asserts a zero-tolerance policy on participation in what it considers hate groups. It eventually ousted Pistolis.
via dailyprogress: North Carolina man charged for participating in 2017 torch march at UVa

