As a mob of President Trump supporters stormed the Capitol building Wednesday, one face stood out from the crowd in photographs: A tattooed, shirtless man donning horns and red, white and blue face paint inside the chambers.
The horned man in question is none other than 32-year-old Jake Angeli, a familiar face at pro-Trump rallies and a purported QAnon conspiracy theorist sometimes referred to as the “QAnon Shaman,” according to the Arizona Republic’s website.
In the past year, Angeli has been spotted — often in costume — at various demonstrations across the country, including a Washington D.C. protest after Joe Biden’s presidential win in November.
The Arizona native has also been photographed multiple times at the Arizona State Capitol — and in one instance, during a pro-Trump rally in February, held a sign that read, “Q Sent Me,” according to the paper.
According to Arizona Central, Angeli was shouting, “You all know who Q is?” and explained to passersby that Q “was a government agent who wanted to ‘take the country back’ from pedophiles and globalists.”
Prior to allegedly joining the QAnon movement, Angeli was “a small-time actor, voice over artist, and singer,” according to Nick Martin, an editor at the Informant.
That observation appears to be confirmed by a profile for Angeli on Backstage.com, a job-hunting site for those in the entertainment industry.
The website page claims Angeli is skilled in singing, screenwriting, public speaking and accents, among other attributes.
Arizona Central reporter BrieAnna J. Frank said on Twitter that Angeli “is very much” a Trump and QAnon supporter. Frank cited an interview she conducted with Angeli in May, in which he applauded President Trump and criticized the media.