![Pictures of the weapons carried by Cole Tomas Allen, the suspect in the shooting incident in Washington at the annual White House Correspondents' Association dinner, are displayed as US Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel and Assistant Director in Charge (ADIC) of the FBI Washington Field Office Darren Cox take part in a press conference at the US Department of Justice about the shooting incident, in Washington, D.C., US, April 27, 2026. [Photo/Agencies]](https://villagevoicenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/69f008c8a310d68600fc779e.jpeg)
WASHINGTON – Cole Tomas Allen, the suspect in the shooting Saturday night at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner, was charged on Monday with attempting to assassinate US President Donald Trump.
On Monday, Allen made his first court appearance at the US District Court for the District of Columbia since the shooting.
He was charged with three criminal counts, namely, attempting to assassinate the president, interstate transportation of weapons, and discharge of a firearm during a violent crime.
The prosecutor said Allen had a 12-gauge pump-action shotgun and a .38 caliber pistol, and was also carrying with him three knives and other dangerous paraphernalia when he was arrested, CNBC reported.
According to law enforcement authorities, Allen, 31, traveled from California to Washington, D.C. by train and checked into the Washington Hilton hotel with weapons before the attack.
Allen reportedly sent an email to his relatives shortly before the shooting, in which he wrote that Trump administration officials were “targets, prioritized from highest-ranking to lowest.”
He also wrote: “I walk in with multiple weapons and not a single person there considers the possibility that I could be a threat.”
Live footage of the event showed that the suspect attempted to rush a security checkpoint and exchanged gunfire with law enforcement. A US Secret Service officer was injured amid the shooting incident.
Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and all Cabinet members were evacuated from the dinner after the shooting. Attendees were seen on the live broadcast ducking around their tables and taking cover.
Shortly after the security incident, US Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi wrote on X that the agency was investigating “a shooting incident near the main magnetometer screening area” at the dinner, in coordination with the Metropolitan Police Department.
Political violence has been frequent in the US in recent years. Trump has been the target of multiple assassination attempts and death threats during his presidential campaign and as president. The most prominent example is the July 2024 assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, in which Trump narrowly survived while campaigning for president.
China Daily
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