Text messages obtained by Judicial Watch indicate two CIA bomb technicians helped with the Democratic National Committee pipe bomb on Jan. 6, 2021.
The Central Intelligence Agency deployed two bomb technicians to assist with a pipe bomb found at the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington D.C. on Jan. 6 and there were “several CIA dog teams on standby,” according to records obtained by Judicial Watch.
References to CIA involvement on Jan. 6 were included in text messages obtained from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) under a U.S. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit Judicial Watch filed in 2023 against the U.S. Department of Justice.
“These striking records show that CIA resources were deployed in reaction to the January 6 disturbance,” Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said in a March 13 news release.
Among the 88 pages of heavily redacted records obtained by Judicial Watch is a group of text messages labeled “Jan. 7 Intel Chain” that includes two references to CIA assets in use or on standby on Jan. 6, 2021.
“FC I has two CIA bomb techs with us—EEO [redacted] in route,” one text read. Just prior, what appeared to be a text from the ATF said, “Our assets: SRT in Capitol with Group I, Groups II and III assisting with pipe-bomb scene on New Jersey and D St. SE.”
The CIA bomb techs are referenced in a text later that afternoon as “helping Capitol Police bomb squad clear Capitol.”
Another text refers to the availability of K9 units to assist in clearing buildings. “7 NGA dog teams, 2 ATF and several CIA dog teams on standby,” the text said.
The disclosures are the first documented references to the CIA having any involvement in response to the protests, chaos and later rioting at the Capitol on Jan. 6.
Two pipe bombs were discovered near the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6: one in an alley between the Capitol Hill Club and the Republican National Committee building, and the other in the bushes on the southwest side of the DNC building. Despite a three-year federal investigation and an offer of $500,000 in reward money, no arrests have been made.
