Al Pisanelli

Albert Pisanelli
Threat Level	Tier 1 - White
Known Events Frequented	Too Many Games, Magfest, ColossalCon East (assume KPT Banned from all events due to criminal activity)
Approximate Location	New Jersey (Actual location unknown, incarcerated in a NJ prison)
Alias(es)	Step Ladder#1893 (Discord)

Executive Summary

CONTENT WARNING: THIS WIKI PAGE DISCUSSES PEDOPHILIA, CHILD ABUSE, AND CHILD PORNOGRAPHY, TURN BACK NOW IF THESE ARE TRAUMATIC SUBJECTS FOR YOU

Albert Pisanelli was a long-time feature of the convention community, and a rather enthusiastic, if annoying, shitposter. His antics were considered amusing to many, for a time, including some Aegis Initiative volunteers.

Starting in 2019, he was repeatedly accused by Shamgar Connors of pedophilia and due to the fact that he was the only accuser for quite some time, these accusations were ignored.

This was a grave mistake as in early 2021, Albert Pisanelli was involved in a sting set up by the Department of Homeland Security[1]. He was lured to a convenience store under the pretense of meeting a 13 year old girl he had been talking to online for sex.

Given the nature of Al's punishment, and the stigma surrounding this very heinous crime, it is rightfully assumed at the moment (Early 2023) that Mr. Pisanelli is automatically banned from any event this wiki tries to provide information for.

This wiki page serves as both Burn Notice and Known Person/Threat entry, and is a lesson in how not to handle an investigation.

Recommended Handling Methods

At this time, nothing is recommended as Mr. Pisanelli is incarcerated in a state prison with a sentence of 5 years, without parole, and will be subject to further restrictions that are intended to last the rest of his natural life [2].

He is expected to be released sometime in 2026.

Please contact us if he has been released so that the category of this page can be updated and this section can be revised.

If released, we do not recommend that Mr. Pisanelli be allowed anywhere near any convention for the rest of his life.

Description

As described in the summary, in early 2021, Al Pisanelli was arrested by federal agents working as part of "Operation Safe Quarantine" which targeted "people engaging in the online exploitation of children during the pandemic". According to a news article, he was caught with a camera, tripod, sex toys, lubricant and condoms [3]. He was initially charged with second-degree Luring, second-degree Attempted Sexual Assault, third-degree Leader of a Child Pornography Network, third-degree Possession of Child Sexual Abuse Material, third-degree Attempted Endangering the Welfare of a Child, and fourth-degree Attempted Criminal Sexual Contact.

Al would admit during interrogation to possessing more than two dozen images or videos of children engaging in sexual acts and sharing those files with others. It appears that he took a plea deal with the Burlington County Prosecutor to plead guilty to only one count of one crime and a reduced sentence.

In September 2021, Mr. Pisanelli was found guilty of second-degree endangering the welfare of a child. He was sentenced to 5 years in prison without parole, will have to register as a sex offender when released, and will be under parole supervision for the rest of his natural life.[4]

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Clarification

Al Pisanelli has never been used by Project Sauron or Aegis Initiative as a volunteer, due to the reasons of him being far too unqualified, extremely hyperbolic in his speech, and generally annoying. He expressed interest in doing so, but was ignored. For example, to the annoyance of one of our Discord mods, he would routinely shitpost in a channel that was strictly off-limits to shitposting (a channel dedicated to collecting information on the then-unfolding issues with Vic Mignona).

Near the end of his freedom, he would also tag some of our volunteers in every single slightly objectionable post he saw on facebook to help him "dunk on" facebook users. This was also unwelcome.

Within con party groups like C.U.C.K.S. and 1449, he was barely tolerated.

However, he did routinely give us screenshots and information on various persons that we would later use, but that does not mean he was associated with us and we vehemently reject this assumption, especially given how angrily some Project Sauron/Aegis Initiative volunteers would respond to him tagging us in posts to get our attention.

Additionally, making such an assumption, given the sheer scale of how many people give us information that we later use, would lead one to grossly misinterpret how we function.

The reasons we did not out him to the community at large are covered in the Shamgar Connors article, namely that the primary accuser placed all responsibility for something to be done on civilians with no authority and refused to even disclose that they had talked to Law Enforcement, much less answer the question of "why have you not reported this person to the police?".

Identifying Photos

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Media Covering Incident

Al Pisanelli charged

Al Pisanelli found guilty and sentenced