Donald and Melania Trump unharmed after shooting incident at White House correspondents’ dinner
President Donald Trump speaks in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House after an incident at the annual White House Correspondents' Association Dinner in Washington. Picture: AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana
US president Donald Trump and his wife Melania were evacuated from the White House correspondents’ dinner on Saturday evening after the event was interrupted by loud gunshots.
A suspect was in custody, the FBI said, after the annual black tie dinner honoring the White House press corps in the ballroom of the Washington Hilton was suddenly interrupted by confusion and chaos. Journalists ducked under tables as authorities rushed the president and members of his cabinet out of the room.
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Muriel Bowser, the Washington DC mayor, said in a press conference Saturday night that a sole gunman rushed at the Secret Service in the lobby of the hotel. There is no reason to believe that anyone else was involved in the incident, she said.
The suspect is in custody and being “evaluated” at a local hospital. He was identified as Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, the is reporting, citing two law enforcement officials.
Jeffrey Carroll, the DC police chief, said that investigators believe the suspect did fire a shot and was armed with a shotgun, a handgun and multiple knives. He also said the suspect is believed to have been a guest at the hotel.
Jeanine Pirro, a US attorney for the District of Columbia, said the defendant is being charged with two counts of felony firearms and assault charges and will be arraigned Monday.
In a press briefing from the White House later Saturday evening, Trump praised the Secret Service and said an agent was hit by a bullet that was stopped by a ballistic vest.
“That was very unexpected but incredibly acted upon by Secret Service and law enforcement, and this was an event dedicated to freedom of speech that was supposed to bring together members of both parties with members of the press,” he said.
“And in a certain way, it did, because the fact that they just unified. I saw a room that was just totally unified."
He also described the Washington Hilton as “not a particularly secure building” and argued the merits of the construction of a ballroom at the White House. “This is why we have to have all of the attributes of what we’re planning at the White House. It’s actually a larger room, and it’s much more secure.”
Weijia Jang, president of the White House correspondents’ dinner, told the ballroom earlier Saturday that the president wants to reschedule the dinner in the next 30 days.
“Thank God everyone is safe, and thank you for coming together tonight,” she said. “We will do this again.”
Guests had just started eating dinner when the commotion began. The atmosphere in the room was tense as journalists waited to hear what happened and what to do next.
anchor Wolf Blitzer reported that he saw someone with a gun at the event.
“I did see the gunman on the ground after he started shooting,” he said. “Police officers threw him to the ground.”
amie Raskin, a Democratic congressman from Maryland, who was attending the dinner said he never saw a shooter, but “I think a Secret Service agent threw me to the ground and on top of some other people and people were screaming and yelling”.
“I heard some loud noises but I don’t know if that was people reacting or if that was something outside, it was hard to know, but people very quickly were saying that was a shot, that was the gunshot,” he added.
“People were terrified; people seem to be relieved now.” Mike Johnson, the House speaker, said on X that he and his wife were at the dinner and were “thankful no innocent people were harmed and everyone is now safe”.
Kelly and I were at the event tonight, and we’re thankful no innocent people were harmed and everyone is now safe.
— Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) April 26, 2026
We’re grateful as always for the law enforcement and first responders who acted so quickly to bring the situation under control.
Praying for our country tonight.
This year’s dinner was already tense given the presence of Trump and top members of his cabinet, including Pete Hegseth, the secretary of defense, and Marco Rubio, the secretary of state.
Trump agreed to attend this year’s dinner after refusing to attend last year and during his first term. The correspondents’ dinner tradition began in 1921, though the tradition of a presidential guest started in 1924, when Calvin Coolidge attended.
The Washington Hilton is the same hotel where Ronald Reagan was shot and gravely wounded by a would-be assassin in 1981.
When asked Saturday night if he was concerned about threats to his life, Trump, who also survived an assassination attempt during his campaign for the presidency in 2024, said: “It’s a dangerous profession.”
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