Overview
- U.S. Magistrate Judge Matthew Sharbaugh ruled that Brian J. Cole Jr., 30, must remain jailed, writing that the government showed no set of conditions could reasonably protect the community.
- Prosecutors say Cole confessed after his Dec. 4 arrest to constructing and placing two pipe bombs outside the RNC and DNC on Jan. 5, 2021, and hoped they would detonate and draw news coverage.
- The court cited records-based evidence—phone, vehicle and financial data—along with alleged continued purchases of bomb-making parts into 2022 and hundreds of phone wipes as key public-safety concerns.
- Sharbaugh emphasized the reported speed with which Cole could assemble IEDs, concluding that even strict home confinement with GPS monitoring would not sufficiently mitigate risk.
- Cole has not entered a plea and no trial date is set, and a procedural wrinkle remains because a local Superior Court grand jury returned the federal charges; he faces up to 30 years if convicted.