The explosive devices found at the Republican National Committee and Democratic National Committee’s officers in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday were reportedly real.
Fox News cited a senior federal law enforcement official Thursday morning as saying the explosive devices “were the real deal,” and not phonies simply intended to look real. ABC News journalist Luke Barr has since corroborated the Fox News report, also reporting that a federal law enforcement source says that the devices were real.
According to ABC News, one of the devices was found adjacent to the RNC’s headquarters and the other device was found in a bush at the DNC’s headquarters. Both locations are about two blocks away from the Capitol.
ABC News obtained a photo of the device found at the RNC and reported that both of the devices were rendered inactive after a bomb squad blasted them with water cannons. Sources told ABC News late Wednesday that investigators were analyzing the remnants of the devices to find clues about their construction and conducting chemical tests. The investigation is ongoing.
A federal law enforcement source tells ABC News that the device pictured here (obtained by @JackDate) and the other at the DNC were actual explosive devices and were not fake devices. Confirming @JakeBGibson's reporting. pic.twitter.com/qSJznTvRNH
— Luke Barr (@LukeLBarr) January 7, 2021
In a press conference late Wednesday, Metropolitan Police Chief Robert Contee said that four people were dead amid the unrest at the Capitol, including one woman who was fatally shot by Capitol Police after a group of rioters stormed inside. The other three died in what Contee described as apparent “medical emergencies” in the area, but he did not elaborate as to the nature of those emergencies.
He also said a cooler with a long-gun and molotov cocktails was also recovered from the area around the Capitol. According to The New York Times, a 70-year-old Alabama man was arrested while in possession of molotov cocktail materials and a weapon.
At least fourteen police officers were also injured in the demonstration and subsequent violent unrest, including two police officers who were hospitalized. One of the hospitalized officers was injured after he was pulled into a crowd and attacked, and the other was injured after he was hit in the face with an unspecified projectile, said Contee.