The White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday turned chaotic after a gunman opened fire while US President Donald Trump sat with First Lady Melania Trump and other dignitaries in the banquet hall of Washington’s Hilton Hotel. Donald Trump shared the first photo of the suspect on the social media platform Truth Social.
Fow News journalist Karol Markowicz said in a post on X that the suspect was identified as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, California, who was immediately taken into custody.
(Livemint could not independently verify this development, and no official statement has yet been released about the suspect.)
What do we know about the shooter at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner and the shots fired?
Someone in the crowd at the press dinner heard 5 to 8 shots being fired, according to the AP report. After the loud noise startled attendees, including Trump, law enforcement officials rushed to evacuate the top officials. One official confirmed there was a shooter, but no further details were provided.
U.S. Rep. Jeanine Pirro shared a short video from the Hilton after the incident, saying, “I was escorted out of the ballroom after shots were fired. The Secret Service is now in charge of this building, this hotel. I just spoke with Mayor Muriel Bowser. She’s on her way and (Police) Chief Jeffery Carroll is on her way. He’ll be here as soon as he’s in command.”
FBI Director Kash Patel spoke at a press conference after the shocking incident, where he thanked the agencies involved in providing security.
“You saw how brave Secret Service agents immediately responded, subdued and subdued the suspect and protected the lives of thousands of individuals at the hotel. Thanks to our interagency partnership with the Department of Homeland Security and the Metropolitan Police Department, the FBI was quickly deployed to the scene, took over the Evidence Response Unit, and is reviewing all ballistics that were found at the scene, including the long gun and ammunition from the PANi,” he said.
Seeking more information about the incident from the public, he added: “We are interviewing witnesses as we speak. You will hear our team on the scene with the mayor and the head of the FBI field division there…If you have any information regarding this event, 1-800-CALL-FBI. No information is too small, no information is insufficient, come with those who were there, interviews, please come with those who were there.”
