WASHINGTON (AP) — The accused gunman who tried to storm the ballroom at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner with guns and knives traveled across the country before the event and is believed to have been targeting President Donald Trump and members of his administration, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Sunday.
Blanche said officials believe the suspect traveled by train from California to Chicago and then on to Washington, where in recent days he checked in as a guest to the hotel where one of the glitziest events in the nation’s capital was being held Saturday night with its typically tight security.
Investigators have not publicly named the suspect, but two law enforcement officials familiar with the matter have identified him to The Associated Press as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, California.
Law enforcement officials who have examined the gunman’s electronic devices and his writings preliminarily believe he intended to target administration members in attendance at the dinner.
He attempted to charge into the cavernous ballroom at the Washington Hilton but was tackled to the ground in a chaotic scene that resulted in shots being fired, President Donald Trump being hurried off the stage and guests ducking for cover beneath their tables.
“It does appear that he did in fact set out to target folks who work in the administration, likely including the president,” Blanche told NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
The suspect is believed to have purchased the two firearms he carried within the last couple of years, Blanche said. He is not being cooperative and is expected to face multiple charges on Monday.
Video posted by Trump showed the suspect running past security barricades as Secret Service agents ran toward him. One officer was shot in a bullet-resistant vest but was recovering, officials said. The gunman was taken into custody and was not injured, but was being evaluated at a hospital, police said.
“He failed,” Blanche said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” “Law enforcement did their jobs.”
Authorities believe the suspect fired the shot that hit the Secret Service officer, who is expected to make a full recovery, Blanche said.
“He’s going to be great, he’s going to be fine, and thank God he was wearing a bulletproof vest,” Blanche said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.”
Social media posts that appear to match the suspect show he is a highly educated tutor and amateur video game developer.
A May 2025 profile photo of Allen appears to match the appearance of the man in a photo of the alleged attacker being taken into custody that was posted Saturday night by Trump. The photo, posted to the social networking site LinkedIn, shows him in a cap and gown after graduating with a master’s degree in computer science from California State University, Dominguez Hills.
Allen earned a bachelor’s degree in 2017 in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. He listed his involvement there in a Christian student fellowship and a campus group that battled with Nerf guns.
The shooting at the security barricades happened minutes after the event got underway.
The Secret Service and other authorities swarmed the room as guests ducked under tables by the hundreds. Gasps echoed through the ballroom as guests realized something was happening. Hundreds of journalists immediately got on phones to call in information.
“Out of the way, sir!” someone yelled. Others yelled to duck. From one corner, a “God Bless America” chant began as the president was escorted offstage. Outside the hotel, members of the National Guard and other authorities flooded the area as helicopters circled overhead.
After an initial attempt to resume the event, it was scrapped for the night and will be rescheduled.
Trump was unusually conciliatory after what he saw as a third attempt on his life in less than two years. He suggested that his personal politics had made him a repeated target, but he also called for unity and bipartisan healing in an increasingly violent world.
“It’s always shocking when something like this happens. Happened to me, a little bit. And that never changes,” Trump told reporters in a hastily organized news conference at the White House late Saturday.
This report is given by Associated Press. The Sen Times holds no responsibility for its content.
Did Donald Trump get shot at the 2026 Correspondents’ Dinner?
U.S. President Donald Trump was not hurt in the shooting attack and was safely removed from the Washington Hilton, along with the rest of the crowd, by the U.S. Secret Service. While he did trip during his escape from the stage, he was not physically injured and made a statement to the media from the White House briefing room later that night.
Who is Cole Tomas Allen?
Cole Tomas Allen, 31, is the prime suspect in the White House Correspondents’ Dinner attack. Allen is from Torrance, California, and attended CalTech (2017), where he studied mechanical engineering, as well as Cal State Dominguez Hill (recently) for a master’s degree in computer science.
How many times has Donald Trump been attacked?
The 2026 Washington Hilton attack is the third time since 2024 that President Trump has been targeted in the proximity of an attack. It comes after the recent high-profile assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, and a lesser-known second-time security breach early in his second term.
Secret Service response to 2026 WHCD shooting?
The Secret Service response involved rapid “cover and evacuate” measures and the rapid deployment of armed tactical units on the dais after the shooting. The suspect was intercepted on his way to the ballroom at a security checkpoint and thwarted by agents.