Suspected gunman checked into WHCA dinner hotel night before event

Suspected shooter Cole Allen showed up at the Hilton Hotel where the White House Correspondents’ Dinner was being held on Friday, just a day before the event, sources told Fox News.

Allen, 31, an IT worker from Torrance, California, is accused of opening fire at an event attended by President Donald Trump. Initial reports indicate that Secret Service agents fired 3 to 4 shots and that Allen fired at least one.

The FBI is conducting a ballistics investigation at its Quantico laboratory, and authorities are also working with credit card companies to examine purchases going back in time.

Authorities said Allen initially spoke with police, but he began refusing to talk Sunday morning.

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Media and spectators gather outside a home linked to Cole Tomas Allen, the suspect in the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, in Torrance, Calif., on the night of Saturday, April 25, 2026. (Robbin Goddard/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Sources say Allen is scheduled to make his first court appearance Monday.

Allen told law enforcement after his arrest Saturday night that he was aiming Trump administration officialsaccording to senior federal law enforcement officials.

Allen said he planned to “shoot Trump administration officials,” the sources said.

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A suspect lies face down as law enforcement arrests him following a security incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington, DC, April 25, 2026. (@realDonaldTrump via Truth Social)

Authorities said Allen rushed through a Secret Service checkpoint during the event at the Washington Hilton while armed with several weapons. He then allegedly opened fire, hitting a Secret Service officer wearing his bulletproof vest.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Sunday that authorities do not believe Allen worked with accomplices. Trump said Saturday night that the shooter was a “lone wolf.”

“Well, what President Trump said is that as of now, we believe that’s what the police chief said as well,” Blanche said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. “But this is a 12-hour, 13-hour investigation, and so these facts can change, and they change often. And if there is anyone else involved, we will make every effort to find out everything we can about it.”

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a press conference in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House April 25, 2026 in Washington, DC. President Trump issues a statement after the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner is canceled following a possible shooting. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images)

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“But based on what we know right now, given what happened last night and the evidence we’ve gathered so far, we don’t believe anyone else is involved, but again, we still have a lot of work to do and a lot of evidence to review and collect,” Blanche added.

Fox News’ David Spunt contributed to this report.