A 29-year-old man showed up at the Phoenix Comicon on Thursday armed with an array of weapons with the intent to kill police officers and one of the original Power Rangers.
Phoenix police arrested Mathew Sterling on suspicion of attempted murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, wearing body armor during the commission of a felony, resisting arrest and carrying a weapon in a prohibited place. Sterling had three handguns, a shotgun, a combat knife, pepper spray, and Chinese throwing stars.
Can you imagine how embarrassing it would be to be murdered at a comic book convention by a morbidly obese man with a Chinese throwing star? I use to think the way David Carradine died was the most embarrassing way to go. Now I’m not so sure.
Sterling is in jail. A judge set his bond at one million dollars. Would the judge have set it higher if he thought the suspect was a man of means? Looking at his mugshot, it doesn’t look as though he can afford soap, let alone a one million dollar cash bond. Then again, he was able to acquire a whole bunch of weapons.
Thank God for snitching
Police were able to find and arrest Sterling because he posted his plans on Facebook. Someone read his posts on Facebook and thankfully called the police. Good for them. Whoever they are, they’re a hero.
Snitching is good. Snitching saves lives.
Sterling claimed he was allowed to carry weapons because he was The Punisher. Even if you squint your eyes and tilt your head, Mathew Sterling doesn’t look at all like Frank Castle.
Mathew Sterling looks like a big fat fat hippie.
As well as killing police officers, Sterling wanted to kill Jason David Frank, the Green Power Ranger from The Power Rangers TV show.
I’m not at all familiar with The Power Rangers. I don’t know why Sterling would want to bring harm to Jason David Frank.
Phoenix Comicon bans all weapons
Organizers of the Phoenix Comicon responded to Thursday’s shenanigans by banning all prop weapons at the event. This angered some cosplayers who planned on attending the event with fake swords or fake firearms.
This ban makes sense. I should be able to attend a comic book convention without having to constantly scan my environment, verifying weapons carried by my fellow con attendees are made from paper mache and not valyrian steel.
Conventions check cosplayers’ prop weapons before they’re allowed in to make sure they are in fact props. My problem with that is who’s doing the checking? Are they trained professionals or are they untrained volunteers dressed like Klingons?
I encourage anyone attending a comic book convention to shower, put on some deodorant, slap on a little Old Spice, put on some clean clothes, and leave your weapons, fake or otherwise, at home. The only thing you should ever arm yourself with at a comic book convention is good personal hygiene and respect for your fellow attendees.
