A QAnon conspiracy cult leader who bizarrely claimed assassinated US President John F Kennedy was still alive has died in a dirt bike accident, it is reported.
Michael Protzman, 60, died from multiple blunt force injuries after losing control of his dirt bike at the Meadow Valley Motocross track in Millville, Minnesota, on June 30.
Known as Negative 48 by his followers, Mr Protzman emerged as a leader in the bonkers QAnon movement, gaining thousands of followers.
He was an advocate in the belief that former US President John F Kennedy and son JFK Kr were still alive. He persuaded his followers to travel to Dealey Plaza in Dallas where JFK was assassinated in 1963 to witness his "reappearance".
He died as a result of “multiple blunt force injuries” after he “lost control of dirt bike” according to a report from the Southern Minnesota Regional Medical Examiner’s Office, obtained by VICE News.
When this didn't happen, his conspiracies morphed to say that Donald Trump was JFK Jr in disguise.
Mr Protzman was an avid Trump supporter and claimed to be in contact with him.
He was also pictured at numerous Trump rallies over the years.
Since starting out as a series of hoax posts on online forum 4Chan, QAnon has grown into a widespread movement.
Its followers espouse an intertwined series of beliefs, based on anonymous web postings from "Q," who claims to have insider knowledge of the Trump administration.
A core tenet of the conspiracy theory is that former US President Donald Trump is secretly fighting a cabal of child-sex predators that includes prominent Democrats, Hollywood elites and "deep state" allies.
QAnon, which borrows some elements from the bogus 'pizzagate' theory about a pedophile ring run out of a Washington restaurant, has become a "big tent" conspiracy theory encompassing misinformation about topics ranging from alien landings to vaccine safety.
Followers of QAnon say a so-called Great Awakening is coming to bring salvation.
The 'Q' posts, which started in 2017 on the message board 4chan, are now posted on 8kun, a rebranded version of the shuttered web board 8chan.
QAnon has been amplified on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
And while the original posts were targeted at young, angry internet natives, their shift to mainstream social networks has seen them adopted with great enthusiasm by older generations.
Media investigations have shown that social media recommendation algorithms can drive people who show an interest in conspiracy theories towards more material.
Researchers say that Russian government-supported organisations are playing a small but increasing role amplifying the conspiracy theories.
QAnon backers helped to organise real-life protests against child trafficking and were involved in a pro-police demonstration in Portland, Oregon.
QAnon has also gained a toehold in the US House of Representatives, with at least one Republican candidate who believes the theory winning a seat.
