The reward being offered for leads in the case of the live pipe bombs placed outside Republican (RNC) and Democratic National Committee (DNC) headquarters on 6 January has been increased to $100,000 (£72,888), as new video footage appears to show that they were planted the day before.
On Friday, the FBI tweeted that it is now offering up to $100,000 for information about the explosive devices, which was an increase from the previously offered $50,000 (£36,440) and $75,000 (£54,660).
In a follow-up tweet, the agency described the suspect in detail, writing: “The individual wore a face mask, a grey hoodie, and Nike Air Max Speed Turf shoes in black, grey, and yellow”.
The pipe bombs were found near to the headquarters of the RNC and DNC in Washington, DC, on the afternoon of Wednesday 6 January, just before a mob of pro-Trump rioters breached the US Capitol.
Five people died and several more were injured in the riots. A week later outgoing President Donald Trump was impeached by the House for the second time for inciting the events.
The increased reward came just after The Washington Post revealed that it had obtained security footage that appeared to show the suspect planting the bomb outside of the RNC the night before on 5 January.
At around 8:13pm on that date, a security camera close to both headquarters, which are situated around a mile apart, captured the suspect carrying a backpack.
The suspect was seen walking towards an entrance to an alley that led to the RNC building, and was then captured carrying a backpack and wearing the same clothes as in pictures released by the authorities.
An official familiar with the investigation told the Post that the suspect was believed to have been filmed on 5 January walking to the RNC building to place the explosive device that was found the next day.
Another video that was released by the authorities on 7 January, showed the suspect carrying the backpack towards where the bomb was found. The official told the Post that the footage is the last known sighting of the suspect before the bomb was planted.
The suspect was then filmed a few minutes later going back the way they came, walking briskly and with the backpack on their back instead of being carried.
A source from the federal law enforcement confirmed to ABC News on 7 January that the suspected pipe bombs were active and could have caused “great harm.”
As rioters laid siege to the Capitol, causing lawmakers to barricade themselves into offices, bomb technicians used water cannons to break the explosives apart and disable their functionality. No one was harmed in the incident.
