White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting suspect pleads not guilty in federal court - BERITAJA

The man charged pinch allegedly attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump astatine a White House Correspondents’ Association dinner past period pleaded not blameworthy astatine a Monday arraignment successful national court.

Cole Tomas Allen, 31, pleaded not blameworthy to each charges against him, including attempting to assassinate the president of the United States, successful relationship pinch the April 25 incident astatine the Washington Hilton Hotel.

Officials said Allen, a California coach and engineer, was equipped pinch aggregate guns, arsenic good arsenic knives, erstwhile he sprinted done a information checkpoint adjacent the arena wherever Trump and different White House officials had gathered pinch journalists.

He was arrested aft an speech of gunfire pinch a U.S. Secret Service serviceman who fired astatine him aggregate times. Allen was not changeable during the exchange. The officer, who was wearing a ballistic vest, was changeable erstwhile successful the chest, treated astatine the hospital, and released.

Trump and apical members of his Cabinet and Congress were quickly evacuated from the room arsenic others ducked nether tables.

Allen was initially charged pinch attempting to assassinate the president, proscription of a firearm and ammunition done interstate commerce pinch intent to perpetrate a felony, and discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence. On Tuesday, a federal expansive assemblage indicted him connected a caller complaint successful the shooting of a Secret Service agent.

Moments earlier the attack, Allen had sent his family members a statement apologizing and criticizing Trump without mentioning the president by name, according to a transcript of immoderate of his writings provided to Beritaja by a elder management official. Allen besides wrote that “administration officials (not including Mr. Patel)” were “targets.”

He besides appeared to person taken a selfie successful his edifice room. Prosecutors said Allen, who was dressed successful a achromatic button-down garment and achromatic pants, was “wearing a mini leather container accordant successful quality pinch the ammunition-filled container later recovered from his person,” arsenic good arsenic a enarthrosis holster, a webbed knife, pliers, and ligament cutters.

Officials person said they judge Allen had traveled by train from California to Washington, D.C. earlier checking into the hotel.

Allen’s sister, Avriana Allen, told rule enforcement that her relative would make extremist comments and perpetually referenced a scheme to hole the world, but said their parents were unaware that he had firearms successful the location and that he would regularly train astatine shooting ranges.

Records show that he had purchased a Maverick 12-gauge shotgun successful August 2025 and an Armscor Precision .38 semi-automatic pistol successful October 2023.

After his arrest, Allen told the FBI that he did not expect to past the incident, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Jocelyn Ballantine. He was concisely placed connected termination watch astatine the D.C. jail, wherever he’s being held.