FBI searches for clues after ICE 'Molotov cocktail' attack

Let's get going and let's start with our Rob DiRienzo. We understand that some sort of explosive device, fiery device was thrown at the ICE building in Atlanta, according to the FBI. And now the FBI is investigating what exactly unfolded here. So Rob DiRienzo joins us live to chat about it. Rob, what are the big questions the agency is trying to ask and answer at this point? Hey there, Ariel. Good afternoon to you. Within the last couple hours, the FBI is now telling us that this was a Molotov cocktail-style device that was thrown over this fence here on Ted Turner Drive into the ICE headquarters here in Atlanta, in downtown Atlanta. You can see here behind me, there's increased police presence. We've seen APD as well as Federal Protective Service here on scene trying to make sure the building remains safe. How all this happened, who was behind it. We just don't know at this point. But the FBI tells us this happened around 8:15 last night. They say a witness described seeing a flash of a flame once that object made it over the fence. And once the feds moved in and realized what it was, they, of course, called in the FBI. Now, a little while ago, I spoke with a law enforcement expert who is very well versed in counterterrorism, former NYPD. He talked about the key things that federal agents and investigators will be looking at today. Take a look. Major focus is going to be the device itself. Every little aspect of this device is going to be going all over looking for any sort of evidence. It could be DNA off the items, could be where it was purchased. They'll track that down and then they'll track down video. So whether or not this individual was caught specifically on video throwing the device, but they're going to go make a whole perimeter around this scene and pull video from every source possible. And back out here live, we do want to emphasize it does seem things are relatively business as normal at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Building here in downtown Atlanta. We've been seeing members of the public going in and out, and we also haven't seen a lot of damage or even remnants of what this small fire may have left behind. We're hearing from FBI agents that it landed on the grass. It didn't appear to cause any damage to the actual building itself. But this is not the first time that this building has been targeted by a Molotov cocktail. Back in 2020, a rioter was accused of doing the same exact thing. At this point, agents are still looking for him. They've offered a $20,000 reward in connection with that incident. Now, it's important to note that no group or activist organization or terrorist group has taken responsibility for this. And we also don't know of any arrests at this point. But The investigators tell us that they're working active leads and their investigation continues. Ariel? Rob, thanks so much for the update. Based on where you're standing, are you able to kind of get a sense of the damage to the facility at all or how extensive it might be? Well, like I just mentioned a moment ago, there's no apparent damage to the building. The agents are telling us again that they believe this landed in the grass area. You can see there's some grass behind the fence between the fence and the building. So it doesn't appear that there's any damage here. I will say in that 2020 incident, federal investigators say there was about $40,000 worth of damage. So thankfully, it doesn't seem that this detonated or exploded the way these attackers or attacker may have hoped. But it could have been a whole lot worse down here, Ariel. Rob, thanks so much. I was getting this damage confused with that earlier incident when I was listening to you. So I wanted to understand what exactly we were looking at. Thanks for showing us a live look there on the ground. We'll see you again later this evening as you continue to gather the latest from the investigation. Rob DiRienzo, thank you so much for your time.