Everything We Know About the Suspected White House Correspondents’ Dinner Gunman
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As you’ve likely heard by now, a man rushed a security checkpoint and exchanged gunfire with police at Saturday night’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
That man has now been identified as Cole Tomas Allen, a 31-year-old California native.
According to a statement from acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche, Allen traveled across the country by train with the goal of targeting Trump administration officials.
When he entered the lobby of the Washington Hilton Hotel, Allen was allegedly armed with a shotgun, a handgun, and multiple knives.
One Secret Service agent was struck by a bullet, but he was wearing a bulletproof vest and is expected to make a full recovery.
According to CBS News and other outlets, Allen purchased the guns legally. Officials said he has no criminal record and was not on the radar of any law enforcement agencies.
Authorities tell the outlet that “at least five to eight gunshots” were fired before the suspect was subdued and apprehended.
Allen has been identified as an educator from Torrance, California, with an engineering degree from Cal Tech.
Investigators say they found anti-Trump and anti-Christian rhetoric on his social media pages.
He was “tackled to the ground” and handcuffed before he was able to present any threat to President Trump, who was immediately evacuated from the premises.
Allen is believed to have been acting alone.
There’s been widespread speculation about his beliefs and possible motives, but those rumors remain unconfirmed at this time.
Asked how he knew that Allen was targeting administration officials, Blanche said he wished to keep his remarks “general.”
“We’re still looking into that. We know there were some writings, and we’ve already spoken with several witnesses who knew him,” he told Kristen Welker of Meet the Press.
“As far as threats that may have been communicated before, we’re still actively investigating that evidence.”
Blanche added that he believes Allen was “targeting members of the administration, likely including the president.”
We will have further updates on this developing story as new information becomes available.
