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QAnon believer who led Capitol mob on Jan. 6 sentenced to five years in prison

A QAnon believer who was one of the first rioters to enter the U.S. Capitol building on Jan. 6 has been sentenced to 60 months in prison, the Department of Justice said.

The big picture: The rioter, Doug Jensen of Iowa, was found guilty in September on seven counts, including felony charges of assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers during the Jan. 6 riot, as well as of civil disorder.


  • In addition to his prison sentence, Jensen must pay $2,000 in restitution and faces three years of supervised release, the DOJ said.
  • Federal prosecutors had asked the court to sentence Jensen to 64 months in prison with three years of supervised release and fines, per NBC News. Jensen's lawyer had asked for his client to receive 27 months in prison.

Background: Jensen recorded videos on Jan. 6 while at the Capitol, including one where he said he was storming the White House.

  • He also led a mob toward a United States Capitol Police officer, Eugene Goodman, outside the Senate chamber.
  • Jensen "was the rioter who would not back down” and was “weaponizing that mob," prosecutors said.
  • Jensen carried a 3-inch knife during the riots, scaled the wall outside the Capitol and led a mob in chasing an officer inside the building, per the DOJ.

Flashback: Jensen was arrested and jailed last year before he was released to home detention. As a condition of his release, he promised he would not use the internet and renounced his belief in the QAnon conspiracy theory.

  • However, he was jailed for violating the terms of his release by watching videos on election conspiracy theories about a month later.

Zoom out: About 900 people have been arrested for crimes connected to the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, according to figures kept by the Department of Justice.

Editor's note: This story was updated with details from a Department of Justice press release.

More from Axios:

Trump: Capitol rioters have been treated "unconstitutionally"

187 minutes: Jan. 6 hearing to show Trump's deliberate inaction

Jan. 6 committee plans Dec. 21 release for final report

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