A Colorado mother plotted to kidnap her son from state custody with the help of far-right conspiracy theorists, police say.
Cynthia Abcug, 50, is alleged to have become involved with the QAnon group - believers in a far-right conspiracy theory detailing a supposed secret plot by an alleged “deep state” against Donald Trump - after losing custody of the child.
Abcug’s daughter told police and child services caseworkers that her mother had “gotten into some conspiracy theories and she was ‘spiraling down it’” after her sibling was removed from their home.
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She said her mother had become abusive, had purchased a gun, and was planning an armed “raid” to get her son back, reports NBC News.
Abcug accused the people who took her son of being “paedophiles” and “satanists”, and began making frequent appearances on YouTube channels claiming that child protective services “has child trafficking rings in certain areas”.
She also allegedly enlisted the help of a man identified only as Ryan, who claimed to be “a sniper”. She reportedly never left the house without Ryan and only went out to go to QAnon meetings or to practice shooting at a gun range.
Following a tip-off to police by her daughter, the mother-of-four was taken into custody on 30 December and charged with felony conspiracy to commit kidnapping, before being released after posting bond.
QAnon supporters have been offering support on Twitter and are donating to a GoFundMe for her legal case.
A Twitter account associated with Abcug posted on 1 January: “Still fighting for my children… Need prayers I am not giving up.”
The alleged thwarted kidnapping plot would not the first serious crime to be inspired by the QAnon conspiracy theory.
A man was arrested on terrorism charges in 2018 after driving an armour-protected truck to the Hoover Dam and demanding that the government release a report that QAnon adherents believed would expose the “deep state”, reports The Washington Post.
