Cole Thomas Allen told law enforcement officials he was not specifically targeting the US president Donald Trump but was aiming for “administration officials,” CBS News reported.
The 31-year-old shooter attempted to penetrate a security checkpoint during the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner. Allen was intercepted by the Secret Service, leading to an exchange of gunfire that left one agent wounded.
Following the confrontation, Secret Service agents evacuated President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump from the venue. Allen, a software engineer from Torrance, California, who was a guest at the hotel, was subsequently arrested.
President Trump addressed the incident at a press conference, characterizing it as a new assassination attempt. While he did not definitively link the attack to the ongoing war with Iran, he noted the context of the conflict, which began following the assassinations of high-ranking Iranian figures, including Supreme Leader Ali Hosseini Khamenei.
Trump said that he will not be deterred from “winning the war in Iran”. When asked if he thought the war on Iran could be a motive, the US president said “I don't think so, but you never know.” He added that investigators are working to determine the motive of the shooter, whom he described as a “lone wolf.”
The incident occurred as negotiations between the United States and Iran remain at a stalemate. After three weeks of talks, no significant progress has been made, and both sides have rejected each other’s terms, leading to concerns that active combat may resume.
Jeanine Pirro, the US attorney for the District of Columbia, announced that the suspect faces two initial charges: “using a firearm during the commission of a crime of violence” and “assaulting a federal officer with a dangerous weapon.” Pirro stated that she expects further charges to be filed as the investigation develops.
“It is clear, based on what we know so far, that this person was determined to inflict as much damage and harm as possible,” the District Attorney said. Allen is scheduled to appear in federal court on Monday.
This marks the third direct threat against Trump since he was on the campaign trail almost two years ago. The first took place on July 13, 2024, when he was wounded in the ear during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
The second attempt was thwarted in mid-September of the same year at the Trump International Golf Club in Palm Beach, where a Secret Service agent spotted a rifle barrel in the tree line while the president was playing golf nearby.
