Seems like that part is just bad reporting. I presume they mean the Comcast (or whatever provider it is) account is no longer active, not that a router has been simply unplugged (annoyingly, the average user/journalist doesn't understand the relationship between a copper connection, modem, and router/WiFi and that hasn't been helped by Comcast bundling them as a single device).
It would still be relatively trivial to restore the connection so it's not a valid reason for requiring the backdoor, but I think that was the writer's intent.
Also, even if they didn't restore the broadband at the guy's apartment, couldn't they just take the router and plug it in back at the station, since the login credentials have already been established?
Even the mention of the reporters swarming the apartment highlights the absurdity of the FBI's logic. How can they justify needing to scour every last digital crevice when they couldn't even be bothered to secure and scour the physical space they had access to?
That's exactly what I said in the comment that you replied to:
"Also, even if they didn't restore the broadband at the guy's apartment, couldn't they just take the router and plug it in back at the station, since the login credentials have already been established?"
However, the sibling comment below my original asserts that iOS won't re-connect to WiFi after booting until the pin has been entered (and thus no backup will occur). If that's true, and if the phone had been powered down at any point, then retrieving the router isn't a viable solution anyway.
It would still be relatively trivial to restore the connection so it's not a valid reason for requiring the backdoor, but I think that was the writer's intent.
Also, even if they didn't restore the broadband at the guy's apartment, couldn't they just take the router and plug it in back at the station, since the login credentials have already been established?
Even the mention of the reporters swarming the apartment highlights the absurdity of the FBI's logic. How can they justify needing to scour every last digital crevice when they couldn't even be bothered to secure and scour the physical space they had access to?