The FBI released new surveillance video Thursday, reinvigorating a four-year investigation into a suspect who planted pipe bombs in Washington the night before the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Unreleased footage from January 5, 2021 shows a person placing a bomb near a bench outside the Democratic National Committee building.
The suspects planted another bomb at the Republican headquarters. Both locations are near the Capitol.
Police deactivated the bombs, but neither exploded.
Despite receiving more than 600 tips and offering a $500,000 bounty, the FBI was unable to confirm whether a bomb went off on the same day that supporters stormed Congress to try to block Donald Trump's 2020 certification. The suspect has not been identified in the four years since it was discovered. election defeat.
“We really hope we can jog someone's memory,” David Sandberg, deputy director of the FBI's Washington field office, said in an interview.
“We believe there are people out there who know more than has been shared.”
It's unclear whether the bomb was connected to the Capitol riot, but the discovery of a bomb nearby on January 6, 2021, diverted police resources and remains one of the enduring mysteries of the time. are.
President-elect Trump's victory in the 2024 election was certified by Congress on Monday, and he is scheduled to be sworn in for a second term on January 20.
The FBI said the suspect was approximately 5 feet 7 inches tall and released a map of his walking route that night.
Investigations have been hampered by the fact that the suspect was wearing an inconspicuous gray sweatshirt and pants, and that it took 15 hours from the time the bomb was planted until it was discovered.
The FBI previously released another video of the suspect wearing distinctive black and gray Nike Air Max Speed Turf shoes.
In the Jan. 6, 2021, melee at the Capitol, rioters poured over police barricades, assaulted approximately 140 officers, and caused more than $2.8 million in damage.
President Trump has promised to pardon at least some of the roughly 1,600 people facing criminal charges for their participation in the riot.
