Cole Tomas Allen Shot Secret Service Agent’s Bullet-Resistant Vest at White House Correspondents’ Dinner

A federal prosecutor overseeing the investigation into the White House Correspondents' Association dinner attack in Washington said buckshot from the gun of Cole Tomas Allen struck a Secret Service agent’s bullet-resistant vest.

Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, told CNN’s “State of the Union” that “a pellet that came from the buckshot from the defendant's Mossberg pump-action shotgun was intertwined with the fiber of the vest of the Secret Service officer,” adding, “It is definitively his bullet.”

BBC

PBS reported that authorities had determined the buckshot hit the agent, and Telemundo similarly said Pirro asserted that the shot that impacted the vest came from Allen’s Mossberg.

The BBC described how the question of who shot the officer remained unclear as prosecutors’ statements changed, noting that court documents “do not explicitly allege the accused shot an officer on the night of the White House Correspondents' Association dinner.”

CNN added that its analysis of hotel surveillance video released by Pirro’s office and audio from inside the ballroom “does not definitively conclude when or whether Allen fired a shot,” even as it said the audio analysis indicates “six shots total were fired during the incident.”

Across the accounts, the agent survived, and PBS stated that Allen “was injured during the attack but was not shot.”

The attack occurred on April 25 at a Washington hotel during the White House Correspondents' Association dinner, with authorities describing Cole Tomas Allen as the suspect who tried to storm the event.

PBS said the incident happened at a Washington hotel on April 25, and it identified Allen as 31 and from Torrance, California, while also stating he worked as a part-time tutor and was an amateur video game developer.

BBC

BBC reported that the public first learned from Trump that a Secret Service officer had been shot, and it quoted Trump saying the agent “was shot from very close distance with a very powerful gun.”

The BBC also described how Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche initially said “That's what we understand as of now” when asked on CBS News if the alleged assailant had shot the Secret Service agent, before retreating the next day when he said, “We wanna get that right, so we're still looking at that.”

Telemundo and Diario Libre both tied the prosecutor’s later statements to the same April 25 incident, with Telemundo stating that Pirro said there was no evidence the agent was hit by friendly fire but that the Sunday update went further.

CNN reported that Pirro’s office filed several charges against Allen after the attack, and it quoted acting Attorney General Todd Blanche saying, “There’s initial charges and there’s an investigation, and to the extent that the government learns more things, I assure you they will, they will become charges.”

El Mundo added that federal prosecutors released a video on Thursday showing Allen firing at a Secret Service agent before being detained, and it described a hearing before U.S. District Judge Moxila Upadhyaya lasting about 15 minutes in which Allen waived his right to challenge his detention.

Pirro’s office and the courts became central to the evolving account of the attack, with multiple outlets describing new video and procedural steps.

PBS said Pirro posted a video on social media showing the moment authorities say a man with guns and knives attempted to storm the media gala, and it noted that questions had lingered about whose bullet struck the officer as the suspect ran through security with a long gun toward the ballroom.

CNN reported that Pirro said additional surveillance video of the incident “will be released,” and it described where Allen went in the moments before he charged past law enforcement officers at the security checkpoint, including a doorway entered while a K-9 and handler looked inside.

CNN quoted Pirro telling Tapper, “He goes into that room to take off a long coat that he has on,” and it added that “He’s wearing a long, dark coat because he has to hide the Mossberg pump action shotgun.”

El Mundo said federal prosecutors released a video on Thursday that had already been presented to the U.S. District Court showing Cole Allen firing at a U.S. Secret Service agent, and it quoted Pirro saying, “Today, we are releasing the video that has already been presented to the U.S. District Court showing Cole Allen firing at a U.S. Secret Service agent.”

In court, El Mundo described Allen appearing in a hearing of about 15 minutes before Judge Moxila Upadhyaya, with his lawyers asking the judge to modify prison conditions because he remained confined 24 hours a day in an isolation cell.

CNN also reported that Pirro said there would be a preliminary hearing with the grand jury on Friday, and it quoted her describing the evidence of intent, saying, “This is clearly — the president is a target.”

While Pirro told CNN that “It is definitively his bullet,” the BBC described a more unsettled picture in which prosecutors’ statements and court filings did not consistently spell out that Allen shot the officer.

The BBC said a week after the alleged attempt to assassinate President Donald Trump at the press gala, “key details about the shooting remain unclear,” and it pointed to the fact that court documents “do not explicitly allege the accused shot an officer on the night of the White House Correspondents' Association dinner.”

CNN

The BBC also reported that the Secret Service officer fired five times on the suspect as he charged, but did not strike him, and it contrasted that with the president and other top officials saying an officer was shot and survived thanks to a bulletproof vest.

BBC quoted Mark Lesko, a former US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, warning that contradictory statements could give defense attorneys room to challenge the case, saying, “you want to conduct a thorough investigation, which could take weeks in a case like this.”

The BBC further described how Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche’s answers changed, including the shift from “That's what we understand as of now” to “We wanna get that right, so we're still looking at that.”

CNN’s analysis similarly reflected uncertainty about timing and whether Allen fired, stating that its review “does not definitively conclude when or whether Allen fired a shot,” even while it said audio indicates “six shots total were fired during the incident.”

Together, the accounts show a legal narrative that has moved toward Pirro’s conclusion about the vest pellet, while other reporting emphasizes that the public record and earlier statements left room for dispute.

The next steps in the case, as described by the outlets, include continued investigation, additional video releases, and potential expansion of charges as prosecutors learn more.

“US Attorney Jeanine Pirro said Sunday that the Secret Service agent who was shot at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner last weekend was hit by a shotgun blast from the suspect charged with attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump”

CNN

CNN reported that acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said, “There’s initial charges and there’s an investigation, and to the extent that the government learns more things, I assure you they will, they will become charges,” and it added that “There will be a preliminary hearing with the grand jury on Friday, Pirro said.”

CNN

CNN also said Pirro offered new details about the suspect’s intent, asserting, “We have a lot of evidence that indicates his intent and the fact that everything that he did thereafter … following what the president was doing,” and it emphasized, “This is clearly — the president is a target.”

PBS stated that Allen remains behind bars pending his trial, and it said he faces charges including attempted assassination of the president and two additional firearms counts, including discharging a weapon during a crime of violence, with a potential life sentence if convicted on the assassination count alone.

Diario Libre similarly said Allen faces charges for attempted assassination of the president and other firearms-related offenses, and it reported that the investigations continue amid questions about the exact development of the shooting.

El Mundo added that prosecutors announced on Thursday they plan to file “many more charges,” and it described the incident as prompting evacuation of Trump and other officials and sparking panic among some attendees.

In parallel, CNN reported that Pirro downplayed any argument of insanity, saying Allen is “far from insane — he is brilliant. … This is a guy who had no psychotic break,” and it said she dismissed the idea she would recuse herself, stating, “Absolutely not. … My ability to prosecute this case has nothing to do with my being there.”