Gab, online haven for Pittsburgh shooting suspect, finds new home with Seattle-area company

Gab.com, a two-year-old "free speech" social media site that became a haven for right-wing extremists who felt limited by Twitter and Facebook's content moderation policies, came under new scrutiny last week following the revelation that the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting suspect expressed his anti-Semitic views there.

A day after shooting suspect Robert Bowers allegedly entered a Pittsburgh synagogue and fatally shot 11 congregants last weekend, Gab went offline. Domain registrar GoDaddy had given the company 24 hours to find another hosting service, and companies like PayPal, Medium, Stripe, and hosting service Joyent blocked it.

But it appears Gab has found a new online home: Epik Inc., a domain name registrar company based in Sammamish, Washington, according to the Washington Secretary of State's website.

In a press release on Saturday, Epik CEO Rob Monster explained why he had decided to support Gab's cause.

"Although, I did not take the decision lightly to accept this domain registration, I look forward to partnering with a young, and once brash, CEO who is courageously doing something that looks useful," Monster wrote of Gab founder Andrew Torba.

Monster continued: "As I reflect on my own journey as a truth-seeking tech entrepreneur, I have no doubt that Andrew will continue to develop not only as tech entrepreneur but also as a responsible steward — one that can balance bravado with diplomacy and who tempers courage with humility."

In the days following the Pittsburgh shooting, Gab founder Andrew Torba condemned the attack and said his company was working with law enforcement on their investigation of the shooting. In Twitter postings, Gab also cast itself as a victim of smears from the mainstream media.