MAYHEM befell the US Capitol building when protesters showed up to contest the 2020 Presidential Election.
Following his arrest for his role in the January 6 protests, self-proclaimed QAnon Shaman Jacob Chansley has since spoken out.
What did QAnon Shaman Jacob Chansley say in his interview?
In his first interview since being arrested for his involvement in the Capitol Hill siege, Chansley defended his actions saying he was just trying to inject some “positive vibrations".
“No, they were not, ma’am,” Chansley told 60 Minutes correspondent Laurie Segall when he was told his actions were an attack on the country.
"My actions were not an attack on this country. That is incorrect. That is inaccurate entirely."
When asked to describe his actions he claimed to have stopped others from wreaking havoc.
"My actions on January 6, how would I describe them? Well, I sang a song,” Chansley said.
“And that’s part of shamanism. It’s about – creating positive vibrations in a sacred chamber. I also stopped people from stealing and vandalizing that sacred space, the Senate. OK?”
Chansley insisted he prevented rioters from “stealing muffins” from a break room inside the building.
“And I also said a prayer in that sacred chamber,” Chansley said.
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“Because it was my intention to bring divinity, and to bring God back into the Senate.
“I consider myself a lover of my country. I consider myself a believer in the Constitution. I consider myself a believer in truth and our founding principles. I consider myself a believer in God” he added.
Despite being behind bars and appearing on national television, his defense attorney believes the interview was logical and justified.
"[Chansley] is the most visible face of this riot. So for the first time in my career, it is not a trepidation to have my client speak out—it’s fully abated,” his defense attorney Albert Watkins told .
“If anything, it’s necessary to shift the message and dialogue that I have been pushing for since Jacob Chansley has been taken into custody - The riots were more than a lynch mob, but the result of years of manipulation [from Trump].
“He believed the president. He believed the words and reacted on those words.
What did he say about former President Donald Trump?
Chansley said he was at the US Capitol because he thought "had his back".
"I developed a lot of sympathy for Donald Trump because it seemed like the media was picking on him," he said.
"It seemed like the establishment was going after him unnecessarily or unfairly and I have been a victim of that all of my life, whether it be at school or at home.
"So in many ways I identified with a lot of the negative things he was going through and I honestly believed and still believe that he cares about the constitution, and he cares about the American people.
"That's also why it wounded me so deeply and why it disappointed me so greatly that I and others did not get a pardon," Chansley added.
"I regret entering that building. I regret entering that building with every fiber in my being."
When asked if he regrets his loyalty to Trump, Chansley answered "no".
When was Chansley convicted?
On November 17, 2021, Chansley was sentenced to 41 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $2,000 restitution fine.
He pled guilty to obstruction of an official proceeding in relation to the US Capitol riots.
At the time, Chansley told the court: "The hardest part about this is knowing that I’m to blame.
"To have to look in the mirror and know, you really messed up. Royally.
"I should do what Gandhi would do and take responsibility."
The conspiracy theorist was scheduled to serve the rest of his jail sentence at Federal Correctional Institution-Safford in Arizona.
On March 30, 2023, Chansley was released from his incarceration 14 months early.
He only served 27 months of his 41-month-long sentence.
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His attorney Watkins released a statement and said: "I applaud the decision of the US Bureau of Prison in this regard.
"After serving 11 months in solitary prior to his sentence being imposed, and only 16 months of his sentence thereafter, it is appropriate this gentle and intelligent young man be permitted to move forward with the next stage of what undoubtedly will be a law-abiding and enriching life."