The authorities took into custody a California man in connection with the shooting at the White House correspondents’ dinner at the Washington Hilton on Saturday night.
The man was identified as Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, Calif., according to multiple law enforcement officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to disclose the information.
Officials said a preliminary review of evidence indicated the suspect intended to target administration officials, most likely including President Trump. He was armed with knives, a shotgun and a handgun, officials said.
Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, said the man was expected to be arraigned in federal court on Monday. He faces charges that include using a firearm during a crime of violence and assault on a federal officer using a dangerous weapon.
Here is what we know about the suspect.
He traveled from California.
Investigators determined that Mr. Allen took a train from Los Angeles to Chicago, and then from Chicago to Washington, Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general, said on NBC’s “Meet The Press” on Sunday.
The suspect checked into the Washington Hilton a day or two before the hotel was to host the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, Mr. Blanche said.
Federal authorities in Los Angeles said a search warrant was served late Saturday night at Mr. Allen’s house in suburban Torrance, Calif.
Investigators are searching for a motive.
Investigators have developed an early sense of the suspect’s apparent motive based on some information gathered from his electronic devices and from interviews with those who know him, Mr. Blanche said.
Mr. Blanche said investigators “know there were some writings” in the evidence gathered that, combined with initial interviews, led investigators to believe the man intended to target administration officials.
Mr. Blanche cautioned that investigators’ understanding of the man’s motives could change as the investigation continues.
Shortly before the attack, the man sent messages to his relatives denouncing Trump administration policies and suggesting that he intended to take violent action, according to a person familiar with the investigation. Other written material found in his hotel room contained similar statements, the person said.
In an interview with Fox News, President Trump said that the suspect had “a manifesto” and that he “hates Christians,” but did not offer further details.
He has connections to game development.
On Facebook and LinkedIn accounts that appear to be connected to him, Mr. Allen described himself as an independent game developer, posting about a game called “Bohrdom” that he released in 2018.
Described as “a skill-based, nonviolent asymmetrical fighting game loosely derived from a chemistry model that is itself loosely based on reality,” the game appeared to have almost no reviews and almost no followers before Saturday on its social media accounts.
A spokeswoman for the California Institute of Technology said that a person named Cole Allen had earned an undergraduate degree in 2017, but that the school had no other information to immediately disclose.
A student named Cole Allen graduated with a master’s degree from California State University, Dominguez Hills, in 2025, according to a statement from that school.
“The university cannot confirm if this is the same suspect identified in the April 25 shooting at the White House Correspondents Dinner,” the statement read, adding that the university “unequivocally condemns this act of violence, as well as all forms of violence.”
He was described as a ‘completely average guy.’
Those who know Mr. Allen described him as an intelligent, mild-mannered man they had encountered as a neighbor or as a math and science tutor.
Dylan Wakayama, the president of a local nonprofit that runs a volunteer program for high school students, said several teenagers in the program had called, saying Mr. Allen had tutored them.
“I think all of us in Torrance are very shocked,” Mr. Wakayama said.
Max Harris, a senior at a local high school who had been tutored for several months by Mr. Allen, struggled to absorb the scene.
“He seemed like a completely average guy,” he said. “Like, I never would have expected anything like this from a guy like him.”
