A Virginia man accused of planting pipe bombs outside the Republican and Democratic national committee headquarters on January 5, 2021, is now facing additional felony charges, according to an indictment released Wednesday.
Brian Cole Jr., 30, of Woodbridge, was arrested in December on charges of transporting and positioning two improvised explosive devices near the DNC and RNC buildings. The new indictment adds two felony counts: attempting to use weapons of mass destruction and carrying out an act of terrorism while armed.
The FBI confirmed the devices were functional, though neither detonated. The case had gone unsolved for years before Cole's arrest, with investigators from the Trump administration treating it as a priority investigation.
Cole initially pleaded not guilty to the original charges and has not yet been arraigned on the new ones. In January, a federal judge ordered him held without bail pending trial, concluding he "poses an intolerable risk of danger to the community if released." The court rejected defense requests for home confinement with GPS monitoring, stating "there are no conditions of release the court could impose to reasonably assure the safety of the community."
During interviews with federal agents, Cole described his actions in detail, walking investigators through how he built, transported, and planted the devices. He told authorities he believed the 2020 election had been compromised and that "someone needs to speak up," according to court documents.
When asked what motivated him, Cole said "something just snapped" after "watching everything, just everything getting worse." He denied intending to disrupt the joint session of Congress that day but said he traveled to Washington to protest election results. Regarding his choice to target both party buildings, Cole stated: "I really don't like either party at this point." He said he selected the headquarters because both parties "were in charge."
Cole's case is one of many prosecutions stemming from events surrounding January 6, 2021, when Trump supporters breached the Capitol and temporarily halted the certification of electoral votes. The legal proceedings continue years later, with dozens of cases still moving through federal courts.
Author James Rodriguez: "A pipe bomb plot hitting both party headquarters shows how some January 6-era grievances cut across traditional partisan lines, even if Cole's rationale was muddled and dangerous."
Comments