A new viral video showed the moment a K9 unit tried to alert a security team to Cole Thomas Allen as he walked through security toward the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner with a long gun.
Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, was charged with attempted assassination of the president, as well as two other firearms counts, including discharging a weapon during a crime of violence. He faces up to life in prison if convicted only of the assassination.
The video shows the K9 barking at Allen through a door near the metal detectors before the handler pulled the dog away as about a dozen federal officers were seen removing magnetometers and casually standing around.
Security footage showed him walking out the door and sprinting towards the officers.
Collin Rugg, who shared the video, said: “The K9 appeared to be on suspect Cole Allen in the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting, but was pulled away seconds before Allen was charged with security.
“The dog could be seen following Allen through the door, but his handler pulled him away,” he noted. “Immediately after the handler turned away with the dog, Allen was seen charging through security.
Collin called the incident “a massive failure on every level.”
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Watch the WHCD security breach video here:
Netizens said the video showed a “major lapse” in security at the hotel’s ballroom, with US President Donald Trump in attendance along with journalists, administration officials and others.
Many social media users have stated that the rule of thumb is “LISTEN TO YOUR DOG!!!!!!!!!!!
“Big mistake by the handler. He needs more training, not the dog,” said another user. “He was pulling his handler towards the threat and the handler just walked away like it was nothing,” added another.
Several users also claimed a conspiracy, saying: “Whoever the K9 handler is needs to be questioned along with whoever decided to take the metal detector off. The K9 handler appears to be talking to Allen and allowing him to continue the attack. The guy has a shotgun in his shirt and his dog is pointing at him. The K9 handler is looking right at him, it looks like he turns and then turns his back to him best – everyone conveniently turns to him inability.”
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Who shot the Secret Service officer?
Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. representative for Washington, also released a video showing the moment authorities say Allen, armed with guns and knives, tried to barge into the dinner and try to kill President Trump.
Pirro posted the video on social media amid questions about whose bullet hit the Secret Service officer as Allen walked through security patrols with a long gun.
Prosecutors previously claimed the agent was shot while wearing a bulletproof vest during the melee, but have not confirmed that the agent was shot by Allen.
But Pirro said there was no evidence the officer was hit by friendly fire.
The video appears to show Allen walking through the magnetometer and pointing a gun at the agent, who authorities say fired five times. It’s unclear from the video at what point Allen’s gun fires.
Allen was wounded but not shot during Saturday night’s attack at the Washington Hilton, which disrupted one of the nation’s capital’s most important annual events.
The gunman quickly made his way to the officers who were removing the magnetometers and casually standing in the hallway before most of them seemed to notice him. Only one officer visible in the video appears to have drawn his weapon before the gunman walked through; Pirro said he was the one who was shot and returned fire.
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“The pages were set perfectly”: Curran
In an interview with Fox News, Secret Service Director Sean Curran defended the agency’s security plan for the event and said he would not change it.
He said the attack was stopped within seconds at the outermost perimeter of the multi-layered security bubble around the president.
The distance from the magnetometers to the podium where Trump sat was 355 feet, with two sets of stairs, a door and many more armed Secret Service officers in between, he said.
“The site was set up perfectly,” Curran said.
