Federal authorities arrested a Virginia man in connection with placing two pipe bombs outside the headquarters of the Republican and Democratic National Committees the night before the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
The suspect is expected to face charges for allegedly plant the devices, which investigators later determined were viable explosives that, if detonated, could have resulted in “serious injury or death,” marking an extraordinary breakthrough in one of the highest-profile federal investigations in recent history.
The full extent of the evidence authorities have gathered that allegedly links him to the planting of the bombs is unclear.
The FBI tweeted a photo and posted a reward for information leading to the location, arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for suspected pipe bombs found in Washington, DC, on January 6, 2021.
FBI
The arrest comes nearly five years after the discovery of the pipe bombs outside the headquarters of the Republican National Committee and the Democratic National Committee on the afternoon of January 6, approximately 16 hours after they were planted by a suspect who was seen in several surveillance cameras wearing a gray hoodie, a mask, and a pair of Nike Air Max Speed Turf sneakers with a yellow logo.
Investigators described the suspect as having a severe gait, noting movements seen on security camera footage.
The discovery prompted a massive response from law enforcement at both locations just minutes before hundreds of President Donald Trump’s supporters were to begin. breaking barricades outside the US Capitol as lawmakers met to certify Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 election.
The lack of other distinguishing identifying characteristics of the suspect frustrated investigators for years when they issued repeated pleas to the public for tips that could help them locate the suspected terrorist.
But four years after the incident, the FBI still could not definitively determine the suspect’s gender, despite a expansive probe which, according to the office, included more than 1,000 interviews, a review of more than 39,000 video files and more than 600 tips from the public that were investigated.
The FBI offered a $500,000 reward for information leading to the identification and arrest of the suspect.
The lack of answers led to widespread conspiracy theories about the identity of the suspect. possible political motivations and speculation about whether they may have had prior knowledge of the attack on the US Capitol.
“There’s a massive cover-up, because the person who planted those pipe bombs doesn’t want you to know who it was, because either he’s a connected anti-Trump informant or it was an inside job,” Dan Bongino, now deputy director of the FBI, said on The Dan Bongino Show in November 2024. “Those bombs were placed there. This was a setup. I have no doubt.”
The pipe bomb planted at the Democratic National Committee came within feet of then-Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, according to a subsequent report by the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general.
“The vice president-elect, traveling in an armored vehicle with her motorcade, entered the building via a ramp within 20 feet of the pipe bomb, and was in the building for approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes before the pipe bomb was discovered and she was subsequently evacuated,” the report says.
The pipe bomb was about 9 feet from the exterior wall of the building, according to the report.
A House committee report released earlier this year provided new information about the FBI’s investigation into the pipe bombs and also highlighted multiple failures by law enforcement to detect the devices and properly secure the scenes after their discovery.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
