The House Chairman leading the congressional probe into the security failures of Jan. 6 on Wednesday subpoenaed T-Mobile for the phone records of pipe bomb suspect Brian Cole Jr.

The phone data that led to Cole’s arrest in connection to the two pipe bombs planted outside the Republican and Democratic National Committees on Jan. 6, 2021 had been in the FBI’s possession since February 2021, but investigators failed to identify him until last year, after new FBI leadership brought a fresh team and outlook to the case. 

“The FBI's handling of the pipe bomb investigation, under the leadership of former Director Christopher Wray, stands in stark contrast to the way it handled every other violation of federal law that day,” Barry Loudermilk, Chairman of the Select Subcommittee on January 6, wrote in a letter to T-Mobile announcing the subpoena. 

Loudermilk says that the phone data is essential for determining how the FBI failed to identify the suspect for years, despite being in possession of all the data different investigators later used to make the connection. 

“In light of the Wray FBI's failures in this investigation, it is crucial that Congress consider legislative reforms to prevent the same failures from happening in the future,” he wrote. For example, Congress may consider legislation requiring a more thorough evaluation of a suspect's cell phone usage and may also consider legislation to improve the FBI's investigative protocol relating to discoveries of improvised explosive devices.”