Vandalism at Sedona's Chapel of the Holy Cross linked to QAnon supporter

A man caught on camera vandalizing the altar of Sedona's treasured Chapel of the Holy Cross may have ties to the QAnon conspiracy as well as a series of stolen property crimes across Arizona.

On Sept. 25, as tourists took pictures and video of the Catholic chapel nested in the red rocks above Sedona, a man entered the building and started swinging a crowbar at the altar. He also sprayed the word "Evil" in spray paint outside on the sidewalk.   

Sedona police arrested Timothy Larson, 41, of Las Vegas and charged him with  aggravated criminal damage, disorderly conduct and a hate crime.

After serving a search warrant for Larson's car and the room he was renting in Sedona, police became aware of Larson's possible connection to a burglary in Sedona as well as some other thefts in Arizona. 

Larson is in the Coconino County Detention Facility in Flagstaff on $50,000 bond.

Police made the connection to QAnon based on Larson's social media posts as well as flyers he reportedly handed to a store clerk who reported him to police. Many of his social media posts include the hashtags #Qanon and #MAGA. 

"He referred to the incident at the chapel as a mission," Sedona Chief of Police Charles Husted said about Larson's social media posts following the incident. 

What is QAnon?

The QAnon conspiracy theory is said to have originated on the anonymous internet message board 4chan, where a user going by the name "Q" claimed to be a government insider with a security clearance and posts vague messages.

QAnon believers try to decipher these messages, which they believe are about the  involvement of Democrats and the Catholic Church in a global child sex-trafficking ring.

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The conspiracy belief involves allegations that Hillary Clinton and John McCain were under arrest and wearing ankle bracelets and that the Mueller report was a smokescreen for a real government investigation that would reveal the pedophile ring as well as lead to the arrest of many of President Trump's critics. 

Though possibly influenced by the theory, Husted believes Larson was acting on his own. 

"It was his role or his mission to go there and do something about it," Husted said. 

Social media helped the arrest happen 

Though the dark edges of the internet may have provided the space for the conspiracy theory to grow, the internet may have helped police as well. 

"The reason we were able to capture this guy so quickly was because of social media and our ability to connect with our community through nextdoor.com," Husted said. Nextdoor is a social media platform for neighborhoods where community members can share information.

A number of tourists were taking pictures when the chapel vandalism happened.

"I took a screenshot of one of those images and I sent it out on Next Door via an urgent alert," Husted said. 

His message alerted hundreds of phones in Sedona. People shared the message with friends, neighbors and on their own social media. 

The message eventually made its way to a store clerk in Sedona. A few minutes later, a man who looked like the one in the picture walked into her store. He reportedly handed her one of his QAnon cards and said he was investigating human trafficking. 

She called 911 and officers searching the area took him into custody without incident, less than two hours after Husted posted that initial alert. 

"It's all because of our community stepping up to help us," Husted said. 

You can connect with Arizona Republic consumer travel reporter Melissa Yeager through email at [email protected]. You can also follow her on Twitter and Instagram.