President Donald Trump and other participants at the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington were evacuated Saturday night after shots were fired. Here’s what we know about the shooting.
What happened in the ballroom? Gunshots were heard after the welcome speech at the gala dinner held at the Washington Hilton. Security teams, armed and ready, took positions on the stage where Donald Trump was seated alongside his wife Melania, Vice President JD Vance, and other officials who were quickly evacuated. Hundreds of guests in evening attire took cover under tables before moving to the hotel lobby and then outside. Sitting at the head table on stage, the American president initially did not react. Then heavily armed security agents evacuated the 79-year-old billionaire, along with other high-ranking officials: Vice President JD Vance, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt, and several ministers. Authorities stated that no personalities or gala attendees were injured.
How did the shooting unfold? According to authorities, a “lone shooter” breached a security checkpoint in the hotel lobby just outside the ballroom where the dinner was taking place, around 8:36 pm (00:36 GMT). Donald Trump shared on his Truth Social platform images appearing to show the suspect rushing the checkpoint before being subdued by officers. “He was armed with a hunting rifle, a pistol, and several knives,” said interim Metropolitan Police Department Chief Jeffery Carroll.
Officers exchanged gunfire with the suspect and “intercepted the individual.” A Secret Service uniformed officer was “hit in the bulletproof vest” and taken to the hospital but was in good condition, Carroll added. The suspect was not hit by bullets but was taken to the hospital for examination. He was in custody and is scheduled to appear before a federal judge on Monday in a federal court.
A rifle and shell casings were found at the scene, FBI Director Kash Patel indicated, mentioning that the FBI was conducting interviews as part of its investigations.
Who is the suspect? Donald Trump shared photos of the alleged shooter, shirtless and handcuffed, face turned toward the ground in what appears to be the Hilton lobby. Authorities have not yet publicly confirmed his identity, but according to US media, he is a 31-year-old man named Cole Tomas Allen from Torrance, California. An AFP photographer observed FBI agents outside a residence in that city late Saturday night. The LinkedIn profile of “Cole Allen,” whose photo seems to match the images disseminated by Trump, describes him as a mechanical engineer, computer scientist, video game developer, and teacher.
Based on preliminary information, “we believe he was one of the hotel guests,” said Carroll to reporters. The arrested man is considered the sole suspect in the case, officials noted. He currently faces two charges: use of a firearm in a violent crime and assault on a federal officer with a dangerous weapon, stated federal prosecutor Jeanine Pirro. Additional charges could be added as the investigation progresses.
“My impression is that he was a lone wolf,” stated Donald Trump, adding that the suspect’s motive had not yet been established, but he believed the shooter was “sick.”
Were there security failures? Questions have been raised about the hotel reception security system and how a weapon could have been brought into the hotel. Attendees mentioned that a metal detector was set up outside the ballroom, but there was no such screening at the hotel entrance.
Initially, Donald Trump stated that it was “not a particularly secure building,” but later claimed that the shooter did not breach the highly secure ballroom where the event was taking place.
The checkpoint the suspect attempted to breach was “just outside the ballroom,” authorities said. “Because [the agents at] that checkpoint did [their] job, no one was injured,” highlighted Jeanine Pirro. “We will review the videos throughout the hotel to understand how the weapon entered and how it made its way there,” added Jeffery Carroll. According to Donald Trump, the security services did “a much better job than at Butler,” where he was the target of an assassination attempt in 2024 at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
