US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were evacuated from the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday night after reports of gunfire on the premises.
The US Secret Service confirmed that no one was injured in the incident and that one person was detained. The suspect was later identified as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen.
Speaking from the White House, the president stated that “it is always shocking when these things happen, that never changes.”
Immediately after the incident, Trump wrote on Truth Social: “The shooter has been apprehended and I recommended that ‘THE SHOW GO ON,’ but that we will be guided entirely by law enforcement.”
He later posted a second message in which he indicated that law enforcement had asked him and the first lady to leave the premises.
What did Trump say after the shooting?
From the White House, approximately an hour after the incident, the president declared that a man had been arrested after attacking the security of the Washington Hilton lodge with a “powerful weapon.”
He told reporters that Truth Social had shared a video of the “thug” charging at the security post, as well as a photo of the subject in custody. Trump called the attacker “a very sick man.”
He also indicated that a secret service agent was shot at point-blank range during the incident, but that his bulletproof vest saved his life.
“I just spoke to the agent and he is doing very well,” he said. “He is very animated, we told him that we love him and respect him, and he is a very proud man.”
The president described a “totally united” room, with a “huge display of affection and unity” after the shooting.
Trump stressed that he wanted the event to resume after the suspect’s arrest, but protocol prevented it.
The event will be rescheduled, Trump said, and will be “bigger, better and even more spectacular.”
The president also referenced two previous assassination attempts, one during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and another while playing golf in Palm Seashore, Florida.
He stated that “it’s always shocking when this happens, that never changes,” and noted that the first lady was “quite traumatized” by the incident.
The president also thanked the media, whom he called “very responsible” in their coverage of the developing situation.
What did Trump post on social media?
Shortly before addressing the media, Trump shared images and a video of the alleged suspect in the shooting.
The photo, taken in close-up, shows a shirtless man on the ground, with his hands handcuffed behind his back and surrounded by secret service agents.
In the low-quality video, a person is seen running alongside security agents, who then turn around and chase him.
In his appearance before the media on Saturday night, the president confirmed that he had given the order to release both the images and the video.
Who is the suspect and what is he accused of?
US authorities identified the suspect as Cole Tomas Allen, a resident of Torrance, California.
According to CBS, the BBC’s news partner in North America, Allen told authorities that his intention was to shoot Trump administration officials.
Citing anonymous sources, CBS also reported that between five and eight shots were fired during the incident.
Police reported that security officers and the suspect exchanged shots, without specifying how many.
In a press conference, Washington DC’s acting police chief, Jeffery Carroll, stated that the alleged shooter was a guest at the lodge where the event was being held.
Carroll stated that the subject was “armed with a shotgun, a pistol and several knives.”
Photos later emerged showing FBI agents and police searching an area at a California address believed to be linked to the alleged gunman.
He worked for a tutoring company in Torrance called C2 Training, two law enforcement sources confirmed to CBS. In December 2024, he received the company’s “Teacher of the Month” award.
It is unknown if he still works for the company. The Torrance Unified School District told CBS that Allen has never been employed by its district.
The California Institute of Technology (Caltech) confirmed to CBS via email that Allen graduated from Caltech in 2017, but did not provide further details.
Jeanine Pirro, a federal prosecutor for Washington state, said the suspect faces two counts of using a firearm during a violent crime and assaulting federal officers with a dangerous weapon.
He added that he will be formally charged Monday in federal court.
What happened at dinner?
The annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner was being held at the Washington Hilton lodge, and the president was expected to give a speech there that same night, when gunshots were heard near the ballroom.
Several BBC correspondents present at the event reported scenes of great confusion after the shooting.
U.S. Secret Service agents were seen escorting the president and first lady out of the room, while senior administration officials such as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth were evacuated by their security teams.
Other attendees remained in the ballroom, confined to their posts, and many journalists attempted to inform their respective organizations.
The White House Correspondents’ Dinner is a tradition of the American press dating back to 1921 and historically attended by the sitting president.
This was the first time Trump attended the event as a sitting president; His last attendance was in 2011.
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- Trump evacuated from an event with journalists and media after shots were heard
