Rep. Thomas Massie shared a Blaze report questioning whether the FBI has correctly identified the suspect in the Jan. 6 pipe-bombing investigation. The Blaze reporters, Joseph M. Hanneman and Steve Baker, previously misidentified former Capitol Police officer Shauni Kerkhoff before the DOJ named Brian Cole as the accused. The article focuses on the limits of sector-based CSLI and includes a retired FBI analyst’s warning that such data lacks the precision to tie a handset conclusively to the person seen on video.
Massie Amplifies Blaze Reporters Who Previously Misidentified Officer, Pushes New Theory on Jan. 6 Pipe-Bomb Case
Thomas Massie Busts Out Trump Impression
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) amplified a recent piece from The Blaze on X (formerly Twitter) that questions the FBI’s identification in the January 6 pipe-bomb investigation and suggests authorities may have arrested the wrong person.
The Blaze story, credited to Joseph M. Hanneman and Steve Baker, examines cellphone location evidence cited by prosecutors and highlights uncertainty about whether sector-based cell-site location information (CSLI) can precisely place a handset next to the hoodie-wearing suspect captured on video. The Justice Department has filed that there is "overwhelming evidence" tying a Virginia man, Brian Cole, to pipe bombs placed near RNC and DNC offices in 2021; The Blaze piece challenges aspects of the government’s cellphone analysis.
"FBI claims an autistic man they arrested last month, 5 years after J6, is a lone wolf who planned, built, and placed the pipe bombs. They want to wrap up the case and put a bow on it, but I’m not buying it. It doesn’t add up," Massie wrote on X when sharing the story.
Hanneman and Baker previously published reporting that misidentified former Capitol Police officer Shauni Kerkhoff as a likely suspect, a claim that later proved incorrect after Department of Justice filings named Brian Cole as the defendant. That earlier reporting helped fuel public speculation about Kerkhoff’s involvement.
The current Blaze article focuses on pings and movement data attributed to Cole on Jan. 5–6, 2021. A retired FBI supervisory special agent who worked with the bureau’s Cellular Analysis Survey Team told The Blaze that "sector-based [cell site location information] does not provide sufficient precision to determine the handset’s exact location or its position relative to the hoodie-wearing suspect." The piece argues that sector orientation alone may not definitively place the handset at the exact spot seen on video.
Prosecutors say forensic evidence and other investigative materials support the charges against Cole, and DOJ filings contend the totality of the evidence is strong. The Blaze and Massie, however, are raising questions about whether the cellphone data alone can settle location disputes — a technical point that has become central in public debate about the case.
This reporting originally appeared via Mediaite and has drawn renewed attention because members of Congress amplified it while questioning key elements of the FBI’s case. The episode underscores the need for careful sourcing and verification in high-profile investigative reporting.
