U.S. authorities have arrested a suspect allegedly involved in leaving pipe bombs near the headquarters of the nation’s two major political parties in Washington, D.C., the night before the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
On Thursday, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Department of Justice identified the suspect as Brian Cole Jr. in a joint press conference.
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“I think some people have given up on finding the perpetrator, but neither the FBI nor our partners have,” said Darren Cox, FBI assistant director.
He explained that the investigation involved cleaning up “3 million rows of data.”
“We will not forget, we will not give up, and we will not relent. It has been nearly five years and our team has continued to amass a wealth of data and tips that we used to identify the suspect,” he said.
President Donald Trump’s officials also argued that the arrests were a victory for the current Republican administration and a sign of the incompetence of Trump’s predecessor, Democrat Joe Biden.
FBI Director Kash Patel said Thursday that “no new information was discovered.”
“The investigation, led by the Deputy Director and AIC (Agent in Charge) of the Washington Field Office, brought in a new team of investigators and experts to review all evidence and scrutinize all data, something the previous administration refused and failed to do.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi, who was also present at the press conference, said Cole would be charged with unlawful use of explosives.
She added that the investigation is ongoing and further charges may be filed at a later date.
long-term investigation
The arrest could end a nearly five-year mystery that has highlighted the growing threat of political violence in the United States.
Law enforcement said the bomb did not explode but was effective and “could have seriously injured or killed innocent bystanders.”
Authorities offered $500,000 for information on the suspect and warned that the suspect “remains a potential danger to the public.”
Early on, authorities released grainy footage of the person who left the bomb behind. The suspect, long believed to be a man, was seen on surveillance video wearing a mask, gloves and a gray hoodie.
The gunman walked through the densely populated Capitol Hill area and arrived near the Democratic and Republican offices, where he planted pipe bombs.
The FBI said last year that its analysts, agents and law enforcement partners “worked thousands of hours conducting interviews, reviewing physical and digital evidence, and evaluating tips from the public about who may have planted the pipe bombs at the Capitol.”
The day after the bomb was left behind, supporters of President Trump stormed and looted the U.S. Capitol to stop the certification of Biden’s victory in the 2020 election.
Trump continues to falsely claim that his loss in that year’s election was due to widespread voter fraud.
In one of his first executive orders since returning to the White House in early 2025, President Trump granted presidential pardons to more than 1,500 people charged or convicted of criminal offenses related to the riot.
The mystery surrounding the pipe bomb is fueling right-wing conspiracy theories that the Capitol riot was an “inside job.” Some online celebrities have claimed, without evidence, that the would-be bomber was a “deep state” government official seeking to discredit Trump supporters.
But even some Trump administration officials who previously helped popularize such theories, like Dan Bongino, have since strongly opposed them.
Last month, Bongino, now the FBI’s deputy commander, denounced rumors about the pipe bombing as “completely inaccurate.” He added that misinformation “will only serve to mislead the public.”
