Prosecutors release video of Trump assassination attempt at White House dinner

Federal prosecutors released footage that compresses the security failure into four chaotic seconds: a man burst from a Washington Hilton doorway, sprinted past a Secret Service checkpoint and forced an officer to draw a firearm and open fire as President Donald Trump attended the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner. The video lays bare how quickly the perimeter was breached, turning a routine arrival point outside the ballroom into a live-fire scene inside one of the capital’s most closely watched political events.

The suspect was identified as Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California. Prosecutors said he was arraigned on April 27 and charged with attempting to assassinate the president, transporting a firearm and ammunition in interstate commerce with intent to commit a felony, and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence. Officials said Allen booked a room at the Washington Hilton on April 6 for a stay from April 24 through April 26, then traveled by train from near Los Angeles to Chicago and on to Washington, a sequence investigators said pointed to advance planning.

Witnesses and law enforcement accounts describe how narrow the window was before the suspect reached the protected area. Helen Mabus said she saw a man holding what she realized was a rifle and watched him move quickly toward the security checkpoint about 40 feet away. Authorities said Allen was armed with a shotgun, a handgun and knives, and was heading toward stairs that would have led to the ballroom when he was tackled and taken into custody. Roughly 2,600 guests were inside the dinner at the time.

One Secret Service officer was struck by a round but was protected by a bullet-resistant vest and is expected to recover. No one in the ballroom was seriously injured, but the breach triggered an emergency evacuation of Trump, Melania Trump, JD Vance and other senior officials. Officials said the suspect appeared intent on targeting Trump administration officials, and Attorney General Todd Blanche said the evidence showed Allen traveled to Washington to assassinate Trump and target members of his administration.

The incident unfolded at Trump’s first White House Correspondents’ Dinner as a sitting president, underscoring how exposed major political gatherings remain even under heavy protection. Trump later praised law enforcement and said the dinner would be rescheduled within 30 days. The video, and the speed of the breach it captured, is likely to intensify scrutiny of VIP protection, checkpoint design and event security protocols at high-risk political venues.