Well after President Donald Trump pardoned the roughly 1,500 defendants arrested, charged and/or convicted as part of the January 6 2021 siege of the U.S. Capitol, the person who left pipe bombs outside the headquarters of the Democratic and Republican National Committee offices remained at large. But even after an arrest has been made in the case, conspiracy theories about the alleged pipe bomber continue to run rampant.
In a Monday article for The Bulwark, writer Will Sommer observed that conspiracy theories about the January 6 attempted pipe bombing were being trafficked even by people who are now members of the Trump administration: FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino alleged in a January 2025 episode of his podcast (prior to his appointment) that the would-be bomber was part of an "inside job."
However, the Department of Justice (DOJ) recently announced that it had made an arrest in the case, and identified 30 year-old Virginia resident Brian Cole Jr. as the suspect. Cole told investigators that he believed Trump's claims that the 2020 election was "stolen," even though President Joe Biden was certified as the winner of both the popular vote and the Electoral College. But despite the DOJ naming a suspect, Sommer pointed out that MAGA was still not satisfied and convinced something was still amiss.
"Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) declared that he would never believe Cole was a Trump supporter or 'lone wolf.' InfoWars personality Breanna Morello, now a member of the MAGAfied Pentagon press corps, declared that one of the federal prosecutors on the case was somehow suspicious. Julie Kelly, one of the right’s leading January 6th sleuths, is still trying to poke holes in the official narrative of the bombing even after the arrest," Sommer recounted.
According to Sommer, Cole's political beliefs effectively prove that everyone arrested in relation to the Capitol attack was firmly in Trump's camp. He further asserted that this inconvenient truth has caused some in the MAGA movement to double down on conspiracy theories to avoid acknowledging the fact that they were wrong the entire time.
"Cole increasingly looks like an election-denying Trump supporter, just like the many people who committed crimes in Washington, D.C. on January 6th," Sommer wrote. "... [I]f Cole did carry out the bombing, that means there’s no conspiracy theory for right-wing media to keep pursuing. He doesn’t appear to have any ties to the CIA or FBI, or anything else that could be grist for false-flag accusations. He seems to be, like the perpetrators of so many high-profile crimes, just a guy."
The Bulwark writer also hypothesized that far-right outlet The Blaze could be in considerable legal trouble after it accused a Capitol Police officer of being the bombing suspect. The Blaze apparently made the accusation based on an X user's "gait analysis" before the officer debunked the claim and proved that she wasn't on site at the time the pipe bombs were placed.
"The attorney for the Capitol Police officer declined to comment to me about any future civil action. But he did tell me via email that he liked an appearance I did Thursday on CNN, where I said a 'massive defamation suit' could be coming for the Blaze," he wrote. "Sounds like it’s time for the Blaze to get out the checkbook!"
Click here to read Sommer's full article in The Bulwark.