The infamous bison man of the Capitol riot: where is he now?

Knowing what drove a man to paint his face, put on bison horns and storm the U.S. Capitol may get us a little closer to understanding what happened before and during the deadly Capitol riot of January 6, 2021. American members of Congress can't seem to agree on whether to call the invaders of the Capitol 'terrorists,' 'tourists,' or - pointing at men like this one - just 'clowns.' The insurrectionists themselves claim to have done nothing wrong.

In an event without precedent, an insurgent mob stormed the Capitol in Washington DC where the Senate was gathered to verify the outcome of the 2020 presidential elections. One of its highly visible figures was this curious character: a man with a bare torso, bison skins, horns, and a painted face.

He appeared in countless social media posts that day, causing Trump supporters like Kristy Swanson to suggest that they were actors. The bison man simply looked too weird to be real.

Journalists and political observers soon enough recognized this colourful Trump supporter as Jake Angeli. He is also known as the 'Q-Shaman,' which is short for 'the QAnon Shaman.' In recent years, Angeli became a renowned advocate of Donald Trump's politics and extreme right-wing QAnon conspiracy theories.

QAnon theories claim, among other things, that the Trump Administration was infiltrated by enemies of the country who stole top-secret documents. These infiltrators, whom QAnon suspects to be powerful Democrats, also supposedly practice cannibalism and Satanism.

Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene supports some of the QAnon conspiracies: read them here

Born in Phoenix, Arizona, Jake Angeli is an aspiring actor who shifted to political activism while continuing the practice of disguising himself. The bison man's prominence in far-right circles is such that they have given him the nickname 'Q-Shaman'. His powerful physique and striking outfits have made him the face of the far right's infamous assault on the Capitol.

From his first appearance in Washington, where he had an angry argument with the police, to his invasion of the Senate floor, Q-Shaman made his presence known throughout the Capitol. He has done so at every Trump event he attended since last summer.

Angeli, his full name being Jacob Anthony Angeli Chansley, considers himself not only a spokesperson for Trump supporters but also a real shaman. He eats organic and is in touch with nature.

Law enforcers do not consider Jake Angeli a harmless shaman or clown. He was charged with the federal misdemeanours of unauthorized entry into a restricted building, violent entry, and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. And those are just the basics. Some politicians believe he's an insurrectionist and a traitor as well.

(Image: Alexandria Sheriff's Office handout)

After seeing his image all over the internet and TV stations, Angeli saw the writing on the wall and decided to turn himself in at a local FBI station. (And no, Rudy Giuliani is not his lawyer!)

Angeli's defence is that he entered the Capitol building in his role as shaman, "creating positive vibrations in a sacred chamber" by singing a song. "My actions were not an attack on this country," he insisted on CBS 60 Minutes. "No ma'am, they were not."

Angeli's media and legal strategy seems to be an emphasis on his 'gentle' nature. His mom vouched for him in several media appearances and the bison man himself insisted on 60 Minutes that he was mostly saying prayers inside the Capitol that day. "I also stopped people from stealing and vandalizing that sacred place, the Senate. Okay? I actually stopped somebody from stealing muffins out of the break room."

Once in prison, the bison man and so-called QAnon Shaman landed with both feet back on the ground. He was Jake Angeli Chansley, without horns, and he was incarcerated. In September 2021, the rioter pleaded guilty to obstructing a civil proceeding. In November, he was sentenced to 41 months in prison.

Finding himself in deep trouble, Angeli says he regrets entering the building "with every fiber of my being." It was a total misunderstanding, he adds. "The one very serious regret that I have, was believing that when we were waved in by police officers, that it was acceptable." This comment is striking because it suggests that police officers were actively participating in the riot.

In addition, the inmate told 60 Minutes, he thought President Trump "had our back." His expectation of the former president is understandable, as Trump continues to reject the 2020 election results to this day. And while he may have told the insurrectionists to 'go home' on January 6, he also told them he 'loved' them.

See why Trump was suspended from Facebook after January 6, and why he will not be back there until 2023 

The Q-Shaman is adamant about eating organic food. When he didn't get it in prison, Jake Angeli initially refused to eat anything. According to his lawyer, he lost 20 pounds. Per court order, the U.S. marshals in Phoenix, and thereafter in Alexandria County, had to start cooking shaman food for the bison man.

His mom Martha explained to ABC news that the bison man is on a strict shaman diet. "He gets very sick if he doesn't eat organic food - literally will get physically sick."

She also called her son a "patriot" and the "gentlest person I know." However, members of Congress and Capitol police who feared for their lives on January 6, 2021, may have different thoughts about that.