Washington — In the four years since the Capitol attack on Jan. 6, 2021, federal investigators have amassed troves of evidence leading to the arrests of more than 1,500 defendants.
Still, one key aspect of an event tied to that day remains a mystery: the identity of the person who planted two pipe bombs on Capitol Hill the night before the riot.
The FBI released new video and information on Thursday in hopes that the clues might turn up new leads. The bureau is again offering a $500,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest. In all, the FBI said it has spent thousands of hours investigating the case.
Investigators released fresh security camera video showing the suspect sitting on a park bench, reaching into his backpack and planting a pipe bomb outside the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington on the night of Jan. 5, 2021. Another pipe bomb was left close to the Republican National Committee headquarters that same evening. The FBI said the devices were left between 7:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.
FBI
The FBI also revealed Thursday that investigators estimate the suspect — who was caught on video wearing a facemask and hooded sweatshirt — stood 5 feet, 7 inches tall.
According to a report obtained by CBS News in March 2021, the bombs contained only one method of detonation — a 60-minute kitchen timer. The devices did not go off, and when and whether they were meant to explode remains unclear. But the FBI said their analysis concluded the pipe bombs were viable and posed a danger to the public.
FBI
They were eventually discovered outside the buildings at about 1 p.m. on Jan. 6, around the time rioters breached the nearby Capitol grounds. Law enforcement officials have said the discovery of the pipe bombs likely diverted resources from the response to the simultaneous crisis at the Capitol.
David Sunberg, head of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, told CBS News in an interview that the case “is absolutely still a high priority” and the devices “could have killed somebody,” noting they were left “in a residential neighborhood.”
Sunberg and the FBI are urging members of the public to review the newly released information, which includes an animated rendering of the Nike shoes the suspect wore that day.
“We have spent thousands of investigative hours, conducting interviews, looking at every piece of physical and digital evidence, and following tips from the public. And those tips from the public have been helpful. They have furthered this investigation,” Sunberg said. “They’ve allowed us to sometimes rule people out. They’ve also given us certain leads that we were able to follow up for investigative purposes, but they have not yet allowed us to identify the person who placed these two pipe bombs outside of the Democratic and Republican National Convention headquarters almost four years ago now.”
The FBI’s failure to find a suspect has attracted criticism from lawmakers. A report released Thursday by Republican staffers on a pair of House subcommittees criticized law enforcement’s initial response to the bombs and the FBI’s subsequent investigation.
The report found that the FBI had identified “multiple persons of interest during the initial weeks and months” of the investigation, and soon “collected over 105,000,000 data points.” But none led to the identification of a definitive suspect.
According to congressional investigators, some of the potential targets included a person who searched “pipe bomb DC” in the time between when the bombs were placed and when they were discovered the next day. The FBI also turned its attention to someone who worked in the area and owned a pair of the suspect’s sneakers.
“The devices placed many lawmakers, staff, law enforcement, and residents in harm’s way. Yet, almost four years after the incident, Americans scarcely have any detail about who planted the bombs or why,” the congressional report said. “This lack of information hampers Congress’s ability to legislate improvements to the security of the Capitol Complex and the operations of federal law enforcement. The failure to identify, apprehend, and prosecute the bomber ultimately makes all Americans less secure.”
contributed to this report.
