'I have forgiven my captors': The 'QAnon Shaman' is out of prison — and still a far-right conspiracy theorist
On November 17, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that Jacob Chansley, a.k.a. Jake Angeli or The QAnon Shaman, had been sentenced to 41 months in prison for his role in the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol Building. Chansley had pled guilty to obstructing a federal proceeding.
DOJ considered Chansley a minor player in the Capitol riot compared to members of the Oath Keepers and the Proud Boys; the seditious conspiracy charges that members members of those groups have been convicted of are way more serious. On Thursday, May 25, Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes was sentenced to 18 years in federal prison, and fellow Oath Keeper Kelly Meggs was given a 12-year sentence.
Chansley did not spend a full 41 months behind bars. He received an early release from federal prison in late March and was sent to a halfway house, which released him on Thursday, May 25.
READ MORE: Proud Boys verdict is in: Guilty of seditious conspiracy
According to the Daily Beast's Erik Uebelacker, Chansley is still drawn to far-right conspiracy theories. Chansley, following his release, tweeted what Uebelacker describes as "rambling five-minute video" via his @americashaman account and posted, "I have no animosity or hatred towards the United States federal government. And I have forgiven my captors, and I pray for them."
Chansley didn't mention former President Donald Trump by name in his video, but his rhetoric is still a bizarre combination of MAGA ideology and eastern spiritual philosophy.
The QAnon Shaman said, "The final lesson I will share is the power that we each wield when we live by and speak truth. Speaking the truth can topple corrupt empires and free whole nations that have been enslaved by illusions. The Buddha once said that three things cannot be hidden long: sun, moon and truth…. While there are those who will say that things in the world are only getting worse, I assert that things are not getting worse…. The truth of global corruption is only becoming more obvious.”
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