Jacob Chansley, the so-called “QAnon Shaman” whose headdress of horns and makeup made him one of the more prominent faces of the Capitol riot, declared he was going to purchase firearms after being pardoned by President Donald Trump.
“I JUST GOT THE NEWS FROM MY LAWYER… I GOT A PARDON BABY!” he wrote on X Monday. “THANK YOU PRESIDENT TRUMP!!! NOW I AM GONNA BUY SOME MOTHA FU*KIN GUNS!!! I LOVE THIS COUNTRY!!! GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!!”
“J6ers are getting released & JUSTICE HAS COME… EVERYTHING done in the dark WILL come to light!” he added.
Chansley, who carried a spear into the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, pleaded guilty to felony obstruction of an official proceeding. He was among the first wave of trespassers in the Capitol building and admitted to using a bullhorn to incite the rioters, according to authorities. He sat where Vice President Mike Pence was seated earlier on the Senate floor, refused to leave the premises, and left a note on the dais that read: “It’s Only A Matter of Time. Justice Is Coming!”
He served 27 months in prison before an early release and was transferred to a halfway house in his hometown of Phoenix, Arizona, in March 2023. He was released that May.
“I regret nothing,” Chansley said in an interview on Tuesday. “I’m a better man because of what I went through.”
At one point he disavowed the QAnon movement, The Associated Press reported.
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After his swearing-in on Monday, Trump granted clemency to about 1,500 convicted in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack to overturn Joe Biden’s rightful victory.
The president’s inclusion of those who assaulted police, such as D.J. Rodriguez, reportedly extended beyond what his own party wanted and has prompted further controversy.