Who is Brian Cole Jr, the DC pipe bomb suspect?

close

Video

FBI arrests Jan 6 pipe bomb suspect

Fox News' David Spunt reports the latest on the FBI's arrest of the Jan. 6 pipe bomb suspect.

The suspect who allegedly planted pipe bombs blocks from the U.S. Capitol on January 5, 2021, has been identified as Brian Cole Jr. of Woodbridge, Va., according to two sources briefed on the arrest.

The sources say Cole, 30, is in FBI custody as of Thursday following roughly five years of investigation. He is charged with use of an explosive device, Attorney General Pam Bondi announced Thursday.

The FBI arrested Cole in northern Virginia. He will make his first court appearance on Friday in Washington, D.C.

Authorities have not released further details about the man, but one federal law enforcement source told Fox that the FBI is carrying out "court-enforced activity" at Cole's residence.

FBI ARRESTS SUSPECT IN DC PIPE BOMB CASE AFTER 5-YEAR INVESTIGATION

Brian J. Cole was arrested by the FBI for alleged involvement in the D.C. pipe bomb incident. (Department of Justice)

According to a criminal complaint filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Washington, Cole is 5 feet 6 inches tall and wears corrective eyeglasses.

He lives in a single-family home with his mother and other relatives and works in the office of a bail bondsman in northern Virginia. The complaint does not specify which bail bondsman employs him.

Cole's step-grandfather, Earl Donnette, told NBC News in a phone call that he spoke with the FBI about his step-grandson, but declined to comment further.

FBI ARRESTS SUSPECT IN DC PIPE BOMB CASE AFTER 5-YEAR INVESTIGATION

D.C. pipe bombing suspect Brian J. Cole, 30,  is in FBI custody as of Thursday following roughly five years of investigation. (Department of Justice)

Bondi said the investigation into the attempted bombing "languished" for four years under former President Joe Biden's administration.

"The FBI, along with U.S. Attorney Piro and all of our prosecutors, have worked tirelessly for months, sifting through evidence that had been sitting at the FBI with the Biden administration for four long years. Let me be clear there was no new tip. There was no new witness. Just good, diligent police work and prosecutorial work," Bondi said.

The suspect was seen sitting on a bench outside the Democratic National Committee headquarters moments before placing one of two pipe bombs discovered near party offices in Washington, D.C. (FBI)

FBI Director Kash Patel credited the U.S. Capitol Police, the Metropolitan Police Department and U.S. Attorney for DC Jeanine Pirro for their work on the investigation.

FBI REOPENING INVESTIGATION INTO COCAINE FOUND AT BIDEN WHITE HOUSE

Video

Authorities discovered the two pipe bombs near the Republican and Democratic National Committees' headquarters around the same time that thousands of protesters a few blocks away began to storm the Capitol over the 2020 election results.

FBI DEPUTY DIRECTOR CLAIMS BUREAU ‘CLOSING IN’ ON SUSPECTS WHO PLANTED JAN. 6 PIPE BOMBS

Neither bomb detonated, but authorities say both were viable and dangerous.

Surveillance footage released by the FBI shows the suspect walking through a Capitol Hill neighborhood carrying a backpack believed to contain one of the pipe bombs on Jan. 5, 2021. (FBI)

Video footage released by the FBI showed the suspect placing the pipe bombs near the two headquarters more than 16 hours before law enforcement found them.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The suspect was seen wearing a gray hoodie, Nike Air Max Speed Turf sneakers, a mask, glasses and gloves, but Cole's identity had long been unknown.

Fox News' Stepheny Price contributed to this report.