The FBI has arrested a male suspect over the placing of pipe bombs in Washington D.C. on the eve of the January 6 riots in 2021.
An arrest was announced Thursday, following an investigation which has spanned almost five years, and only added fuel to the numerous conspiracy theories surrounding the violent insurrection at the Capitol by Trump supporters.
The arrest took place Thursday morning, officials told the Associated Press. No other details were immediately available, including potential charges.
According to law enforcement, the bombs were placed near the offices of both the Democratic and Republican national committees on the evening of January 5, hours before an angry mob stormed the Capitol.
No one was hurt before the bombs were rendered safe. But the FBI previously described them as being âviable,â and said that they âcould have seriously injured or killed innocent bystanders.â
The bombs were at least partially made of 1×8 inch threaded galvanized pipes, end caps, kitchen timers, wires, metal clips and homemade black powder, the FBI said.
The Bureau had offered a $500,000 reward for information leading to an arrest, and released surveillance footage of an individual they believed to be a suspect.
The man in that footage was approximately 5 feet 7 inches, wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt, black gloves, and black-and-gray Nike Air Max Speed Turf Shoes with a yellow swoosh logo. The FBI noted that fewer than 25,000 pairs of these sneakers were sold between August 2018 and January 2021.
The suspect also used a backpack to transport the devices.
Despite the surveillance footage and physical description, along with hundreds of tips and interviews, the bureau had struggled to pin down a suspect. As a result Republican lawmakers and right-wing media outlets have promoted conspiracy theories about the pipe bombs.
Dan Bongino, prior to becoming FBI deputy director, floated the possibility last year that the act was an âinside jobâ and involved a âmassive cover-up.â
