A 31-year-old man armed with a shotgun, handgun, and multiple knives was tackled by officers after rushing a security checkpoint outside the White House Correspondents’ Dinner last night, forcing the evacuation of President Donald Trump and other top officials from the Washington Hilton Hotel.
Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, California, allegedly breached the security perimeter near the event before being stopped by law enforcement. Newly obtained security video shows the moment the gunman charged the checkpoint. Officers subdued him before he could make it inside the hotel ballroom.
President Trump, the First Lady, and other high-ranking officials were quickly swept out of the room. In the video, gunshots can be heard coming from outside the venue.
One Secret Service officer was shot during the incident but survived thanks to his bulletproof vest, according to officials.
Speaking to reporters back at the White House, President Trump commended the responding officers. “A man charged at a security checkpoint armed with multiple weapons. And he was taken down by some very brave members of Secret Service, and they acted very quickly,” the President said. “One officer was shot but saved by the fact that he was wearing obviously a very good bulletproof vest. He was shot from very close distance with a very powerful gun. And did the job.”
Security had been tight for what was President Trump’s first time attending the correspondents’ dinner as president — a rare event bringing together the president, his cabinet, top congressional leaders, and prominent members of the media in a single location. Witnesses reported seeing top officials pressed to the floor and under tables by Secret Service.
Police believe the gunman acted alone and was staying as a guest at the hotel. Investigators are reviewing hotel video to determine how the weapons were brought inside. “We’ll go through video across the hotel to figure out how the gun got in, how it got down here. Those things will come through the investigation. At this point we don’t have that level of detail,” a law enforcement spokesperson said.
The President initially wanted the dinner to restart and has now announced it will be rescheduled within the next 30 days.