FBI raids Torrance home linked to White House dinner shooting suspect

FBI teams in tactical gear searched the last known address tied to Cole Tomas Allen in Torrance, pushing the investigation far beyond Washington and into the suspect’s Southern California background. On Sunday, agents were also seen going door to door in the neighborhood, asking residents whether they knew Allen or his family.

Allen, 31, has been identified by law enforcement sources as the man who rushed a security checkpoint at the Washington Hilton during the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner on Saturday, April 25, 2026. Authorities say he was armed with a shotgun, handgun and knives and exchanged gunfire with law enforcement before being subdued. President Donald Trump, first lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance and other officials were evacuated safely. One Secret Service officer was shot, but a bullet-resistant vest protected him and he was expected to recover.

The search in Torrance is part of a wider effort to reconstruct how Allen moved from California to the nation’s capital and whether anyone saw warning signs before the attack. Multiple reports have described Allen as a tutor and educator from the Los Angeles area, with additional accounts identifying him as a former engineering student and game developer. Investigators are reviewing alleged writings and social-media posts tied to him, including anti-Trump and anti-Christian rhetoric. One senior administration official said the writings reflected anti-Trump views.

Officials have also said preliminary information suggests the suspect acted alone and was likely targeting Trump administration officials. CBS News reported that Allen left behind a written manifesto in which he said he wanted to target officials in the Trump administration. Other reporting said he referred to himself as the “Friendly Federal Assassin” in writings sent to family members, a detail now drawing close scrutiny as investigators try to determine motive and whether threats escalated before the shooting.

The attack has renewed scrutiny of security at one of Washington’s most visible political events. Allen made it to a checkpoint before being stopped, raising questions about screening procedures, the Secret Service response and whether the threat could have been identified earlier. In Torrance, the investigation has turned a quiet neighborhood into the next stop in a cross-country case that is now focused as much on missed warning signs as on the gunfire at the hotel.