Suspect in Jan. 6 pipe bomb case confesses, according to officials

Pirro added that Cole told law enforcement officials that “he was frustrated with both political parties,” leading up to the planting of the devices on the evening of Jan. 5, 2021, the night before the Jan. 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol.

Cole was arrested earlier this month at his home in Woodbridge, Va., approximately 20 miles south of the nation’s capital, after a nearly five-year investigation.

The suspect was arrested for “transporting an explosive device in interstate commerce, as well as the attempted malicious destruction by means of explosive materials,” U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said during a U.S. Department of Justice news conference Thursday following the arrest.

A criminal complaint noted that the FBI had examined Cole’s credit card purchases, searching for components allegedly used to make the two bombs.

At the time of the arrest, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said investigators hadn’t discovered any new information that led to Cole’s arrest, but instead combed through existing data, tips and evidence leading to the latest development.

The undetonated pipe bombs were planted on the eve of the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riots, according to video footage. The RNC and DNC headquarters, located in Southwest D.C., are within blocks of each other, just south of the Capitol.

Investigators indicated the explosive devices were homemade, which included black powder and a kitchen timer. Surveillance footage from the scenes appeared to show an individual wearing sweats, Nike shoes, a hoodie and a mask. In addition, the footage appeared to show the explosives were placed between 7:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. on Jan. 5, 2021.

Earlier this year, the FBI offered a $500,000 reward for fresh information leading to the arrest of the person suspected of planting the bombs in hopes of a breakthrough as the investigation appeared stalled.

During a news conference following the arrest, FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino was credited for spearheading the investigation by FBI Director Kash Patel.

“You’re not going to walk into our capital city, put down two explosive devices and walk off in the sunset. Not going to happen," Bongino said. "We were going to track this person to the end of the earth. We didn’t have to track him to the end of the earth. It wound up in Woodbridge, Virginia.” 

Darren Cox, assistant director in charge of the FBI's Washington Field Office, said investigators evaluated three million lines of data during the investigation. Bongino told reporters that forensic data eventually led to the breakthrough.