Pipe Bomb Suspect Claims He Believed Trump Won 2020 Election
Federal authorities say they have finally identified and arrested the man accused of planting two pipe bombs near the U.S. Capitol on the eve of the January 6, 2021 demonstrations — a case that remained unsolved for nearly four years and generated widespread suspicion about selective transparency from federal law-enforcement agencies.
According to MS NOW, the suspect, 30-year-old Brian Cole Jr., was taken into custody Thursday at his family home in northern Virginia. Law-enforcement sources say Cole confessed to placing improvised explosive devices near both the Republican National Committee (RNC) and Democratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters the night before the protests. Neither device detonated.
Two officials familiar with Cole’s FBI interview said he claimed he believed Donald Trump was the legitimate winner of the 2020 election, while also making comments that suggested what they described as “anarchist leanings,” leaving investigators struggling to define a clear ideological motive. “It’s not yet clear what the drivers were,” one official told the outlet.
Sources also told MS NOW that the FBI has found no evidence that Cole coordinated with outside groups or anyone who entered the Capitol the following day — a notable point given years of speculation about the pipe bombs’ purpose and timing.
Cole’s arrest follows an extensive investigation that involved cell-tower data, license-plate-tracking technology, and forensic analysis of surveillance footage showing a masked figure carrying a backpack and placing the devices.
Though Cole reportedly told agents he was a supporter of Trump, public records reveal a more complicated history between his family and the Trump administration. Cole Jr. and his father, Brian Cole Sr., operated a bail-bonding company — StateWide Bonding, Inc. — that specialized in securing the release of illegal immigrants from federal detention. In 2018, the firm sued the Trump administration and senior DHS officials, accusing them of imposing unfair financial penalties when released immigrants failed to appear in court.
“Hundreds of Plaintiffs’ clients fail to appear because Defendants fail to provide said person with a specified date, time, and location to appear in court,” the complaint read. “Then, only after the subject immigrant fails to appear, these Defendants expect Plaintiffs to find the person in less than 10 days, or suffer the penalty of paying the sum total of millions of dollars.”
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled against the business on November 10, 2020, siding with the Trump administration just weeks before the bombs were planted.
In 2021, Cole Sr. appeared alongside prominent civil-rights attorney Ben Crump, alleging racial discrimination by Tennessee officials who suspended his firm’s license. “We hope the Department of Justice can come in and do a brief investigation,” he said at the time, while Crump — well known for representing the families of George Floyd and Trayvon Martin — demanded a federal review. A Tennessee appeals court later concluded the sanctions were appropriate, citing “repeated misconduct” and finding that Cole Sr. had concealed bankruptcies and tax liens.
According to the FBI affidavit, Cole Jr. began purchasing bomb components in 2019, well before the 2020 election. Prosecutors allege that he acted alone and assembled the bombs over several years using readily obtainable parts.
Investigators have not identified a definitive political motive but say Cole’s confession included remarks claiming the 2020 election was “stolen” from Trump. His social-media history, however, reportedly contains a mixture of pro-Trump material and anti-government rhetoric — an odd ideological blend that complicates assumptions made by early commentators.
Perhaps most notably, the timeline revealed in charging documents raises fresh questions. Cole was stockpiling bomb materials while the political class was still gearing up for the 2020 race. His activity occurred during the same period referenced in TIME Magazine’s 2021 exposé, “The Secret History of the Shadow Campaign That Saved the 2020 Election,” which detailed behind-the-scenes efforts by political operatives, corporate interests, and activist networks to influence election procedures.
Given that the bombs were discovered on January 6 — and potentially could have disrupted the official challenges to election results — investigators have yet to explain how such an event would have aided Trump or his supporters.
Cole currently faces charges including transporting an explosive device across state lines and attempted destruction of property with explosives. He remains in federal custody ahead of his detention hearing.
Attorney John Shoreman, representing Cole, declined to address the confession reports but confirmed his client is scheduled to appear in federal court on December 15.