When Cole Tomas Allen walked into the Washington Hilton on the evening of Saturday, April 26, he wasn’t there for the rubber chicken. The 31-year-old CalTech graduate from Torrance, Calif., who spent months cataloging his anger at the Trump administration on social media under the handle “Coldforce,” booked his room weeks in advance, arrived armed with a shotgun, a handgun and a knife and intended to cause “as much damage as possible,” according to law enforcement officials.
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A chaotic scene ensued in the hotel lobby at approximately 8:30 p.m., when gunfire erupted near security checkpoints, forcing the evacuation of President Donald Trump and several senior members of his administration.
One Secret Service agent was hit in his body armor and briefly hospitalized. Allen was eventually tackled to the ground and restrained.
Here’s what’s surfaced so far.
Who is Cole Allen – and what did the US authorities find out?
Four police officers familiar with the investigation identified the suspect as Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, a suburb about 20 miles southwest of Los Angeles. According to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, he had traveled from California to Chicago in the previous days and then by train to Washington.
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Allen is described by authorities as a lone actor. Interim D.C. Police Chief Jeffery Carroll confirmed that Allen had not previously been on the radar of Washington law enforcement agencies and that officials were not aware of any prior criminal record. He stayed exactly where he attacked.
After his arrest, authorities seized a shotgun, handgun and knives. Blanche said Allen purchased both firearms “over the last couple of years.”
FBI agents and Secret Service operatives were later seen surrounding the Torrance home, with local news footage showing law enforcement spotlights shining into an upstairs window.
‘Friendly Federal Assassin’ Manifesto
Before deleting his BlueSky account, Cole Allen posted a gif from the anime showing a character kneeling in front of two others in an act of deep apology. That image was consistent with what followed: a manifesto sent to friends and family in which Allen opened a list of apologies to “everyone whose trust (he) abused.”
The manifesto drew on his self-described Protestant faith to justify the violence. Allen wrote that turning the other cheek should never excuse complicity in the suffering of others.
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“Putting on the other face is for when you yourself are oppressed. I’m not the person who was raped in a concentration camp. I’m not the fisherman executed without trial. I’m not the thrown out schoolboy or the starving child or the teenage girl abused by the many criminals in this administration. Putting on the other face when someone else is being oppressed is not an oppressed crime.” he wrote
Trump told Fox News that the suspect has “a lot of hate in his heart” and described him as a “sick guy,” adding that Allen’s family had previously alerted law enforcement.
Coldforce Online — Anti-Trump Posts, Ukraine Fundraisers and Theological Fury
Under the handle “Coldforce” – the same name he signed in his manifesto – Allen maintained a BlueSky account with more than 1,000 posts, apparently preferring the platform to X, calling its owner Elon Musk a “Hitler figure”.
His contributions covered a wide terrain of grievances. Vice President JD Vance described him as a “piece of sh-t” for what Allen saw as his abandonment of Ukraine during a Turning Point USA event at the University of Georgia on April 14. He boosted several fundraisers for Ukrainian brigades and students in need of supplies.
Of Trump himself, Allen wrote: “a sociopathic mob boss” — a characterization he based on references drawn from Epstein’s files.
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When the US reached a temporary ceasefire agreement with Iran on April 8, Allen called it a capitulation. “Trump is literally one of those villains that if you screw him up hard enough, he’ll join your team. You have no other insight into it, it’s not really actionable because Schumer is just going to make him act his age anyway, but it would probably literally work on him,” he wrote.
An AI-generated image shared by Trump depicting him dressed as Jesus Christ drew particular disdain from Allen. A self-proclaimed Protestant, he reposted content denouncing what he called Christian hypocrisy in government. One post read: “I’m not sure you can work for this admin and be a true Christian believer and see Trump’s post something like that (Trump as Jesus) without understanding on some level deep inside that you’re a damn king, even if you’ll never admit it to anyone.”
What did investigators say about the White Houe Shooter’s motive?
Blanche said in an interview with NBC News’ Meet the Press that the preliminary investigation — including a review of Allen’s files — indicated the suspect was targeting members of the Trump administration.
“It seems that he has actually decided to target people in the administration, probably including the president,” Blanche said, though he cautioned that the information remained “pretty preliminary.” Allen was not cooperating with the investigation at the time of Blanche’s remarks.
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U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said at a press conference Saturday night: “This individual was intent on causing as much harm and damage as he could,” adding that she expected “many more charges” as the investigation continued.
What charges does Cole Allen face?
Allen is expected to be formally charged with using a firearm during a crime of violence and assaulting a federal officer, Pirro confirmed. He is scheduled to make his first appearance in federal court in Washington on Monday.
Trump called Allen a “lone wolf” at a White House press conference on Saturday.
