It’s been revealed today that the FBI actually blocked agents doing surveillance on a person of interest in the Capitol pipe bomb case from January 6th from interviewing the potential suspect.
The person of interest turned out to be a retired Air Force chief master sergeant that was working as a contractor with security clearance.
Here’s more via TPM:
A former FBI agent has revealed that the bureau tied the suspect wanted in connection to pipe bombs planted at both the Republican and Democrat National Committee buildings in DC before January 6, 2021, to a DC Metro fare card and a license plate, but his team was prevented from interviewing the person of interest.
After over three years, the person wanted for placing the pipe bombs in these locations has yet to be found.
Former leader of FBI surveillance teams Kyle Seraphin told the Daily Wire that shortly after January 6, a counterintelligence team met Seraphin at a Falls Church, Virginia firehouse to brief him on his next surveillance target.
The counterintelligence team had used security footage to follow the person of interest to a Metro station after the bombs were planted, and the card used to access the transit was identified. The card allowed them to determine he got off at a stop in Northern Virginia, where the person was seen entering a car. The card and the car were registered in the name of a retired Air Force chief master sergeant that was now working as a contractor with security clearance.
Seraphin said he and his team were assigned to stake out the person of interest’s row house for several days, but the FBI blocked a request to interview the person. He said they were then called off the person if interest completely, and instead told to look through leads on minor January 6 participants.
“Allegedly someone threw bombs around the Capitol which could have killed congressmen or a busload of nuns or anything, and the answer is you can’t follow this guy around — you have to go to headquarters and read ‘leads’ where someone said ‘I might’ve went to high school with some guy that was standing around the Capitol?’” Seraphin told the outlet.
The bomber wasn’t definitely the same person of interest that they were tasked to watch, Seraphin said, adding though that this was a highly specific lead that could have had a good chance of leading investigators to the suspect.