Arguments in Court to Keep Jan. 6 Pipe Bomber in Prison

In a court session on Wednesday, federal prosecutors presented their case to keep Brian Cole Jr., implicated in the Jan. 6 pipe bombing, incarcerated. They pointed to evidence showing he had been tinkering with explosive chemicals and routinely wiping his cellphone over several years.

The nearly hour-long discussion in front of D.C. U.S. District Court Judge Amir Ali focused on how much danger Cole may still represent to the community.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Charlie Jones asserted that Cole had worked with potassium chlorate—a component commonly used in improvised explosive devices—back in 2018, stressing the risks involved.

Jones explained that this “amateur bomb maker” had a “trigger event” that prompted him to delve into the world of homemade black powder and acquire additional materials after allegedly putting explosives in a backpack outside the headquarters of major political parties on January 5, 2021.

Also highlighted was Cole’s peculiar propensity for resetting his cellphone and deleting all personal data beginning in August 2022, which was described as an attempt to obscure his digital footprint. He reportedly spent several hundred dollars on software aimed at regularly “cleaning” his computer.

“These bombs weren’t harmless,” Jones argued, stating that Cole’s actions were far from isolated incidents.

Toward the end of the hearing, lingering over an hour, an assistant U.S. attorney revealed that during the initial interrogation, Cole fabricated a “carefully planned cover story” before ultimately confessing to his actions.

During the questioning, Cole admitted to having “only one device in his backpack at a time,” a statement indicating his awareness of the explosives and that they were “set to detonate,” according to Jones.

He concluded that Cole had, in fact, confessed to planting the pipe bomb, and the presented video from the interview showed him appearing mentally competent.

On the opposing side, Cole’s defense attorney, Alex Little, dismissed the prosecution’s claims about dangerousness. He mentioned that Cole, 30, has “extreme autism” and obsessive-compulsive disorder, suggesting these factors contributed to his behavior.

Prosecutors mentioned that Cole was diagnosed with Level 1 autism spectrum disorder, which is on the milder end of the spectrum.

Little characterized the connection between Cole’s cellphone activity and the case as “completely fictitious,” backed by evidence from a family doctor regarding Cole’s diagnoses.

He labeled the FBI’s lengthy interview as “suggestive,” and argued that the evidence related to the bomb was not “viable.” He claimed that any alleged explosive tampering looked more like a “scientific experiment” and pointed out that Cole had no criminal record.

“None of this suggests a present danger,” Little emphasized, advocating for Cole’s conditional release to his parents’ residence in Woodbridge, Virginia.

He illustrated that there is a notable difference between constructing a harmless prop and creating a legitimate weapon.

Judge Ali noted that Cole’s case would be much stronger if there were evidence suggesting the erasure of his phone’s data dated back prior to the pipe bombing attempt.

Little had previously asserted there was no indication of evasion on Cole’s part before the factory reset in mid-2022. However, Jones later pointed out that Cole performed another factory reset as early as December 2020.

In a separate point during the hearing, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro indicted Cole earlier this month on counts of transporting explosives across state lines and attempting destruction through explosives, charges that could result in up to 30 years in prison if he is convicted.

Throughout the hearing, both sides agreed to exchange evidence over the next month in preparation for trial, with Little suggesting that the defense might subpoena records from federal authorities and Congress.

FBI agents arrested Cole on December 4 at his parents’ home after a five-year investigation. Jones noted that Cole was not identified as a suspect until late in this investigation, prompting the Bureau to create a new case file for the defense.

There was little indication that future motions would address Cole’s alleged confession or whether his Fourth Amendment rights were compromised regarding the warrant used to obtain his cellphone data.

Though Cole did not speak during the hearing, he acknowledged the judge when greeting him and seemed engaged in the discussion about his potential incarceration.

The next status hearing has been set for February 27 at 10:30 a.m.