A journalist takes a photograph Sunday of the Torrance (Los Angeles County) home connected to Cole Tomas Allen, identified as the suspect at the White House correspondents dinner shooting.
Stephen Lam/S.F. Chronicle
This home in Torrance (Los Angeles County) is connected to Cole Tomas Allen, identified as the suspect at the White House correspondents dinner shooting.
Stephen Lam/S.F. Chronicle
FBI agents visit a residence Sunday next to a home in Torrance (Los Angeles County) connected to Cole Tomas Allen, identified as the suspect in the shooting at the White House correspondents dinner Saturday in Washington.
Stephen Lam/S.F. Chronicle
The California man arrested in the Saturday night shooting at the White House correspondents dinner is expected to be arraigned in federal court Monday on multiple charges, including using a firearm during a crime of violence and assault on a federal officer, according to Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia.
“It is clear based on what we know so far that this individual was intent on doing as much harm and as much damage as he could,” Pirro said after the shooting, which forced the evacuation of President Donald Trump and postponement of the event to a later date.
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The suspect, identified as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance (Los Angeles County), had sent messages to family members minutes before the shooting referring to himself as a “Friendly Federal Assassin” and citing grievances with Trump administration policies, a law enforcement official familiar with the investigation told the Associated Press, indicating that authorities increasingly believe the attack was politically driven.
Allen’s brother contacted police in New London, Conn., after receiving the writings, according to the official. Federal agents have also interviewed Allen’s sister in Maryland, who told investigators her brother had legally purchased several weapons from a California gun store and stored them at their parents’ home in Torrance without their knowledge, the Associated Press reported. She described her brother as prone to making radical statements.
President Donald Trump speaks in the White House briefing room Saturday on the shooting at the correspondents dinner, accompanied by acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, left, FBI Director Kash Patel and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin.
Jose Luis Magana/Associated Press
Allen legally bought a .38-caliber semiautomatic pistol in October 2023 and a 12-gauge shotgun two years later, the official and another law enforcement official told the Associated Press.
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In addition to the writings to family members, authorities uncovered what the official described as numerous anti-Trump social media posts linked to the suspect, the Associated Press reported.
The FBI questioned neighbors around the Torrance home Sunday as reporters gathered outside, along with a constant stream of cars and pedestrians taking photos. At one point a black cat walked by the driveway, then paused and continued its trek around the neighborhood.
FBI agents visit a residence Sunday near a home in Torrance (Los Angeles County) connected to Cole Tomas Allen, identified as the suspect in the shooting at the White House correspondents dinner Saturday in Washington.
Stephen Lam
Allen appears to have a LinkedIn account that shows him graduating with a master’s degree in computer science from California State University Dominguez Hills, according to the Associated Press.
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“*Pretty* sure my Master’s in CS is done!” Allen posted above a photo of himself in a cap and gown.
Law enforcement officers control shooting suspect Cole Tomas Allen at the Washington Hilton Hotel after gunfire erupted at the White House correspondents dinner Saturday.
Alex Brandon/Associated Press
Allen also earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in 2017 from the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena and listed his involvement there in a Christian student fellowship and a campus group that battled with Nerf guns, according to the LinkedIn account and the Associated Press.
Bin Tang, a computer science professor at CSU Dominguez Hills, told the Associated Press that Allen took a few of his classes before graduating.
“He was a very good student indeed, always sitting in the first row of my class, paying attention, and frequently emailing me with coursework questions. Soft spoken, very polite, a good fellow. I am very shocked to see the news,” Tang wrote in an email to the Associated Press.
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The online resume also says Allen worked part time for the past six years at C2 Education, which describes itself as a “personalized test prep, tutoring, and college counseling” business. A 2024 post on the company’s Facebook page listed Allen as the company’s teacher of the month, according to the Associated Press.
U.S. Secret Service members and local police officers work to contain the scene outside the White House correspondents dinner, which was halted by gunfire Saturday night.
Rod Lamkey/Associated Press
Federal campaign finance records show that Allen contributed $25 to a Democratic Party political action committee in support of Kamala Harris for president in 2024. California voter registration records show that he registered with no party preference.
Authorities believe Allen was acting alone when he charged through a Secret Service checkpoint in the lobby of the Hilton Hotel ballroom Saturday night “with a shotgun, a handgun and multiple knives,” said Jeffery Carroll, interim chief of the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department.
He was intercepted by Secret Service officers and exchanged gunfire with them, but was not injured, said Carroll, adding that authorities believe Allen was staying at the Washington Hilton.
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As the gunshots rang out, Secret Service officers hurried the president and first lady Melania Trump out of the correspondents dinner, which was happening inside, as hundreds of attendees dove to the ground and crawled under chairs and tables. Officials including Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman and U.S. Attorney Pirro were ushered from the room.
The beige home at center in Torrance (Los Angeles County) is connected to Cole Tomas Allen, who was identified as the suspect in the White House correspondents dinner shooting Saturday.
Stephen Lam/S.F. Chronicle
No injuries to guests have been reported. A law enforcement officer was shot, but he was wearing a bullet-resistant vest and was in “great shape,” according to Trump, who said he spoke to the agent Saturday night.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said on social media Saturday that he was relieved to hear no guests had been harmed during the incident. House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, called the shooting a “terrifying act of violence” in a statement Saturday night.
“As someone whose family has suffered political violence, my prayers are with the injured officer and all those affected by the trauma of these horrible incidents,” Pelosi said.
Trump’s attendance at Saturday’s annual dinner in Washington for his first time as president had been expected to put his administration’s often-contentious relationship with the media on full public display.
A police officer places tape Sunday near a home in Torrance (Los Angeles County) linked to Cole Tomas Allen, a suspect in the shooting at the White House correspondents dinner the night before.
Ethan Swope/Associated Press
Hundreds of prominent journalists, celebrities and national leaders were awaiting Trump’s remarks at the event, held by the organization of reporters who cover him and his administration. Past presidents who have attended have generally spoken about the importance of free speech and the First Amendment, adding in some light roasts about individual journalists.
“I was all set to really rip it,” Trump told reporters after the event was called off Saturday night, predicting that his speech at the rescheduled event would be tamer. “I don’t know if I could ever be as rough as I was going to be tonight. I think I’m going to be probably very nice.”
Chronicle reporters Lucy Hodgman and Alexei Koseff, photographer Stephen Lam and the Associated Press contributed to this report.