OAN Staff Katherine Mosack
7:45 AM – Monday, April 27, 2026
The suspected gunman in the White House Correspondents’ Dinner will soon be arraigned in federal court in Washington, D.C.
Cole Thomas Allen, 31, is set to appear in court on Monday after authorities identified him as the suspect who fired shots at the Washington Hilton on Saturday, where President Donald Trump was attending his first White House Correspondents’ Dinner as president after years of boycotting the event.
The suspect “charged a security checkpoint armed with multiple weapons,” the president said at a press conference Saturday evening.
He also struck a Secret Service agent, whose bulletproof vest protected him from any life-threatening injuries. The Secret Service reported that he had been released from the hospital on Sunday.
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said Allen will be charged with assault on a federal officer using a deadly weapon and using a firearm during a crime of violence, as well as other charges.
“It is clear, based upon what we know so far, that this individual was intent on doing as much harm and as much damage as he could, and thankfully, because of the checkpoint right outside the ballroom where thousands of people were situated to hear the president of the United States, that checkpoint worked,” Pirro said on Saturday night. “There was no one who was injured, but it was clear where this defendant was going.”
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has opened a criminal investigation while the Secret Service conducts a full background check to understand the suspect’s motivations for the attack.
Allen, an engineer from a Los Angeles, California, suburb, had recently won a “teacher of the month” award for his part-time job at C2 Education, a program helping high schoolers get into college, according to his LinkedIn profile.
The same year, Allen donated $25 to ActBlue with the message, “Earmarked for Harris for President,” according to Federal Election Commission filings.
“We were shocked to hear the news of the horrifying incident that transpired at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner,” C2 Education said in a statement. “We are cooperating fully with law enforcement to assist them in their investigation. Violence of any kind is never the answer.”
President Trump said that one of the suspects’ motives was his “hatred” for Christians, based on an email he reportedly sent out on Saturday to his family.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on Sunday that investigators believe the suspect was specifically targeting Trump White House officials.
“We’re still looking to try to understand a motive. From our preliminary investigation, it does appear the suspect was targeting members of the administration,” Blanche said.
In his manifesto, Allen also apologized to his parents, colleagues, students, bystanders and others for his planned attack, according to NBC News, which received the note from a senior administration official.
“I don’t expect forgiveness,” Allen allegedly wrote. “Again, my sincere apologies.”
He purportedly criticized Trump, though he did not mention him by name, and said he expected more security at the event’s venue.
“Administration officials (not including Mr. Patel): they are targets, prioritized from highest-ranking to lowest,” he wrote, according to the outlet, apparently referring to FBI Director Kash Patel.
“I experience rage thinking about everything this administration has done,” he later added.
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