# Robert David Steele **Robert David Steele** (1952–2021) was a former CIA case officer turned "open-source intelligence" evangelist who became a prolific promoter of [[Pizzagate]] and [[QAnon]] child-trafficking conspiracy theories. In [[Dave Troy]]'s "[[The Big History Behind January 6th]]" Part 5, Steele is one of the ex-intelligence figures who gave QAnon narratives a veneer of insider credibility. ## From OSINT advocate to conspiracist Steele built an early reputation arguing for "Open Source Intelligence" (OSINT) — the idea that publicly available information could rival classified collection. Over time he drifted into florid conspiracism, promoting claims about a global Satanic pedophile elite. Troy notes he pushed the [[Pizzagate]] child-sex-abuse hoax as far back as 2016 and presided over a self-styled "International Tribunal of Natural Justice" staging "hearings" on child trafficking. Steele also promoted the new-age libertarian film *[[Thrive (film)]]* by [[Foster Gamble]], tying the QAnon-adjacent world back to the [[Non-Aggression Principle]] lineage. He appears in investigations alongside [[Thomas Schoenberger]] and [[Lisa Clapier]] in the personnel web Troy documents. ## Death Steele died in 2021 of COVID-19 — after publicly downplaying the disease and declining hospitalization — a fact widely noted given his pandemic denialism. > [!warning] These claims are false > Pizzagate and the QAnon "Satanic pedophile cabal / adrenochrome" mythology are debunked hoaxes that recycle the antisemitic [[Blood Libel]]. This page documents Steele's role in *spreading* them, not any factual basis for them. ## See also - [[QAnon]] · [[Pizzagate]] · [[Michael Flynn]] · [[The Octopus]]