The man accused of attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump at Saturday’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner also shot a Secret Service agent’s bulletproof vest, according to NBC News.
Cole Thomas Allen, 31, was armed with a shotgun, handgun, and knives when he charged through a security checkpoint inside the Washington Hilton Hotel, where the event was being held.
One floor above the ballroom packed with government officials and reporters, Allen discharged one of his weapons, hitting a Secret Service agent in the vest, NBC reported on Wednesday. Some early reports indicated the agent may have been hit by friendly fire. The Secret Service agent was released from the hospital over the weekend.
Federal authorities have charged Allen with discharging a weapon, but he has not been separately charged with assaulting a federal officer.
Investigators are continuing to review digital evidence, including computers from Allen’s California home and devices recovered from his hotel room, a law enforcement source told NBC.
The Daily Wire reported Wednesday that Allen tracked Trump’s movements online and arming himself for the occasion, according to documents filed by the Justice Department.
A photo included in the filings shows items laid out in Allen’s hotel room at the Washington Hilton, including what prosecutors identified as an ammunition bag, shoulder holster, sheathed knife, and tools.
Credit: DOJ
According to the documents, Allen monitored live coverage of Trump’s arrival at the event shortly before the attack.
At about 8:30 p.m., Allen left his hotel room and made his way toward the event. As he approached a security checkpoint, he threw off a long black coat that concealed his shotgun, then charged through the checkpoint and headed toward a staircase leading to the ballroom.
“Had the defendant achieved his intended outcome, he would have brought about one of the darkest days in American history,” prosecutors wrote.
Allen faces charges of attempting to assassinate the president of the United States, transporting a firearm and ammunition across state lines with intent to commit a felony, and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence. If convicted, he faces life in prison.