Buckshot Pellet Links Suspect to Secret Service Agent Shooting at White House Correspondents' Dinner
Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, Calif. charged with attempted assassination; investigators recover forensic evidence linking shotgun to attack
Quick Look
- Investigators have recovered a buckshot pellet from the bulletproof vest of a Secret Service agent shot at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, linking suspect Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, Calif. to the attack.
- Allen allegedly fired a Mossberg pump-action shotgun at the security checkpoint at the Washington Hilton on April 25, striking the agent.
- He has been charged with attempted assassination, discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, and illegally transporting guns and ammunition across state lines.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
The White House Correspondents' Dinner is an annual event bringing together journalists, politicians, and celebrities. This is the first known shooting incident at the event in recent history, raising significant concerns about security at political gatherings.
Investigators have recovered a buckshot pellet from the bulletproof vest worn by a Secret Service agent who was shot at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, according to Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. The pellet links the suspect, Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, Calif., to the attack, Pirro told CNN on Sunday. "We now can establish that a pellet that came from the buckshot from the defendant's Mossberg pump-action shotgun was intertwined with the fiber of the vest of the Secret Service officer," Pirro said during an appearance on CNN's State of the Union. "It is definitively his bullet." Allen allegedly ran through a security checkpoint at the Washington Hilton where the dinner was underway on April 25 and fired a shotgun at the agent. Allen has been charged with attempted assassination, discharging a firearm during a crime of violence and illegally transporting guns and ammunition across state lines. "He hit at that Secret Service agent. He had every intention to kill him and anyone who got in his way on his way to killing the president of the United States," Pirro said. Pirro argued it is clear that President Trump was his target. "We have a lot of evidence that indicates his intent and the fact that everything that he did thereafter, whether it was following what the president was doing, where he was going to the day of the event at the hotel, tracking on his phone, 'Is the president in the ballroom yet? Has the president sat down yet? What time will dinner be served?'" she said. Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche told NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday that Allen could face more charges. "I expect in the next week or so, there will be more information coming out. Obviously, assuming the investigation moves forward, there will be an indictment forthcoming. And all that is typical of what happens," Blanche said. An attorney for Allen did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Sunday.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
Additional charges will be filed against Allen in the coming weeks
Very likely · Within weeks
Secret Service will review and enhance security protocols for future political events
Likely · Within months
Open Questions
- What was the exact motive for the attack?
- Were there any co-conspirators?
- How did Allen obtain the shotgun and transport it undetected?
- What specific phone evidence was recovered?
