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1 hour ago
Aftermath of shooting incident at White House correspondents' dinner
Hello and welcome to our continuing live updates on US politics.
A suspect is in custody following a shooting incident at last night’s White House correspondents’ dinner.
Donald Trump and and wife Melania Trump were rushed out of the event at the Washington Hilton, the hotel where former president Ronald Reagan was shot in an attempted assassination in 1981.
Hundreds of guests, dressed in their black-tie best, hid under tables as US Secret Service agents with guns drawn rushed reporters out of the room and mentioned “shots fired”.
The suspect was identified as Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, the Associated Press reported, citing two law enforcement officials. Trump posted on Truth Social two photos of the purported suspect, shirtless and facedown on the ground.
At a briefing in the press room not long after the event, Trump described the Washington Hilton as “not a particularly secure building” and argued for the merits of the construction of a ballroom at the White House. “This is why we have to have all of the attributes of what we’re planning at the White House. It’s actually a larger room, and it’s much more secure.”
Trump posted on Truth Social that he hoped to reschedule the dinner in the next 30 days.
Stay tuned for more.
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Here are some images coming in over the wires showing investigators and members of the media converging on the home of the suspected gunman in California:
At the White House correspondents’ dinner, darkness came viscerally close
David Smith
Shocking. Unnerving. Unpredictable. Violent. For a decade I have been following the twists and turns of Donald Trump’s America with the privilege of journalistic distance. On Saturday night I felt the darkness come viscerally close.
Bang! Bang! What was that? Where was it? At 8.36pm panic and pandemonium reigned in the cavernous ballroom at the Washington Hilton hotel. There were men running and cries of “Get down!” and “Stay down!”
I saw guests at the White House Correspondents’ Association’s (WHCA) annual dinner – men in tuxedos, women in dresses – diving under the circular tables and, almost as if acting on a cue, did likewise. It was a scene from a dozen Hollywood movies but now it was happening to me, right here, right now.
Here’s what we know so far about the suspect:
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The Associated Press, citing two law enforcement officials, have identified the suspect as Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California.
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He appeared to have been a “lone” gunman, said Jeff Carroll, the interim chief of police of the Metropolitan police department, and was armed with a shotgun, a handgun and multiple knives when he allegedly “charged a US Secret Service checkpoint” at the Washington Hilton.
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We have no reason to believe at this time that anyone else was involved,” said Washington DC mayor Muriel Bowser. The suspect was taken to a local hospital where he was being “evaluated”, she said.
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The suspect has been charged with felony firearms and assault charges, said Jeanine Pirro, the US attorney for the District of Columbia.
Aftermath of shooting incident at White House correspondents' dinner
Hello and welcome to our continuing live updates on US politics.
A suspect is in custody following a shooting incident at last night’s White House correspondents’ dinner.
Donald Trump and and wife Melania Trump were rushed out of the event at the Washington Hilton, the hotel where former president Ronald Reagan was shot in an attempted assassination in 1981.
Hundreds of guests, dressed in their black-tie best, hid under tables as US Secret Service agents with guns drawn rushed reporters out of the room and mentioned “shots fired”.
The suspect was identified as Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, the Associated Press reported, citing two law enforcement officials. Trump posted on Truth Social two photos of the purported suspect, shirtless and facedown on the ground.
At a briefing in the press room not long after the event, Trump described the Washington Hilton as “not a particularly secure building” and argued for the merits of the construction of a ballroom at the White House. “This is why we have to have all of the attributes of what we’re planning at the White House. It’s actually a larger room, and it’s much more secure.”
Trump posted on Truth Social that he hoped to reschedule the dinner in the next 30 days.
Stay tuned for more.
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