The man accused of placing two pipe bombs near the RNC and DNC headquarters is now claiming President Trump’s pardon to J6ers applies to him.
Lawyers for Brian Cole Jr., who was arrested and charged last year on federal charges for transporting an explosive device with the intent to kill, claim that Trump’s sweeping pardon for thousands of protesters on January 6th includes their client.
CNN reported more on Cole’s attorney’s request to the court:
The Virginia man accused of planting two pipe bombs in Washington, DC, the night before the 2021 US Capitol riot asked a federal judge on Monday to dismiss his case, arguing that President Donald Trump’s expansive pardon of January 6 rioters applies to him.
Brian Cole Jr.’s alleged conduct “is so inextricably and demonstrably tethered to the ‘events at or near the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021’” that Trump’s sweeping clemency prevents him from being prosecuted, his lawyers argued in a filing.
“The President’s Pardon unequivocally applies to Mr. Cole, because in no manner is Mr. Cole’s alleged conduct wholly independent of events at the Capitol on January 6,” the attorneys said.
On his first day in office last year, Trump issued a “full, complete and unconditional pardon” to nearly every person who was convicted of attacking the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, marking the end of a sweeping four-year Justice Department probe.
Prosecutors say that Cole placed bombs near the Republican and Democratic national committees’ headquarters on the night of January 5, 2021, and note that the discovery of the bombs diverted law enforcement from the violence at the Capitol the next day.
The FBI arrested Cole in December at his home, where he lived with his parents. He pleaded not guilty in January to federal charges of transporting and attempting to use explosives.
The FBI, which conducted a yearslong investigation, alleges that Cole compiled bomb-making supplies for months before leaving the viable explosive devices outside of the political offices.
Cole’s legal team previously argued the alleged devices could never have exploded and say their client has been entirely peaceful and follows a strict routine due to his diagnoses, which include autism. Their Monday filing notes that Cole disputes the government’s allegations and maintains his innocence.
Photo of Cole Jr.:
PICTURED: Alleged Jan. 6 D.C. pipe bomber Brian Cole Jr. pic.twitter.com/kAna2hIHWV
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) December 4, 2025
Fox 5 DC reported more on Cole Jr’s charges and non guilty plead:
Brian Cole Jr., the man accused of placing pipe bombs outside the Republican and Democratic National Committee buildings in D.C. in January 2021, pleaded not guilty in court on Friday.
Cole was indicted earlier this week on federal charges, including counts of interstate transportation of explosives and malicious attempt to use explosives.
Cole was arrested in early December and is accused of placing two pipe bombs in Washington, D.C., on the eve of the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot. Both were discovered before they were detonated.
Prosecutors say Cole confessed to placing the devices outside the Republican National Committee and Democratic National Committee headquarters just hours before a mob of President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the Capitol. They say he told investigators he hoped the explosives would detonate and “hoped there would be news about it.”
After his arrest, Cole told investigators he believed someone needed to “speak up” for people who thought the 2020 election was stolen and that he targeted both political parties because they were “in charge,” according to prosecutors.
It appears Cole Jr.’s attorneys are attempting to throw a Hail Mary in the court.