Trump removed from press dinner after shooting in Washington

The President of the United States, Donald Trump, was hastily removed by the Secret Service from the Washington Hilton hotel, in Washington DC, last Saturday night (25), during the traditional annual dinner of the White House Correspondents’ Association. A gunman opened fire outside the hall and tried to force entry into the event. The suspect was detained before arriving at the ballroom. Nobody died.

The commotion was noticed around 8:35 pm local time — 9:25 pm in Brasília —, when Trump and First Lady Melania were already seated at the main table. A loud noise was heard, and within seconds, several Secret Service agents surrounded the president and led him out, while people in the hall shouted “get down, get down.” Officials such as the FBI director, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth were also hastily removed by their security teams. None of them were injured.

A security officer was hit during the action, but was protected by a bulletproof vest. He was discharged from hospital on Sunday, according to CNN ea American NBC.

Minutes after the incident, Trump held a press conference. He said the suspect was “a crazy lone wolf” and stated that “no country is immune” to political violence. “You can have the best security system in the world, but if there is a crazy person, he can cause problems,” he declared. Dinner was postponed. It would be Trump’s first appearance at the event in his two presidential terms.

Who is the suspect

The suspect was identified as Cole Tomas Allen, according to the American press. He told authorities he was targeting people linked to President Trump. According to unidentified sources cited by CBS News, between five and eight shots were fired during the incident.

Allen is 31 years old and would be a resident of Torrance, California, in the southwest suburbs of Los Angeles. He reportedly worked as a tutor in Torrance after graduating from the prestigious California Institute of Technology. A LinkedIn profile with the suspect’s name describes him as a mechanical engineer and computer scientist by training, and a teacher by vocation. The profile indicates that Allen earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology in 2017, and in 2025, he received a master’s degree in computer science from California State University, Dominguez Hills.

Police reported that he was a guest at the Washington Hilton hotel, where the dinner was taking place, and carried several weapons — including guns and knives. Allen is receiving hospital treatment following the incident and is expected to be formally charged on Monday, facing charges of using a firearm during a violent crime and assaulting federal agents.

Police believe Allen had no criminal record and was not on the radar of law enforcement in Washington. Facebook posts apparently related to Cole indicate that he even received the title of “Teacher of the Month” in December 2024.

Security flaws under scrutiny

The incident exposed serious vulnerabilities in the event’s security protocol. Former UK ambassador to the US, Kim Darroch, told BBC that there are “clear safety issues” at the dinner. To enter the building, simply present your invitation card. Then, to access the ballroom, you go through a metal detector and a bag search. “But it is a hotel and it is full of guests who are simply staying there,” he added.

The chief correspondent of BBC in North America, Gary O’Donoghue, was present at the dinner and reported that he walked to the hotel, showed the invitation to someone who observed him from a distance and that no one asked for his ID. He also said he was searched superficially — and that, even when the detector beeped, he was not asked to empty his pockets.

The same hotel as Reagan

The incident occurred at the Washington Hilton, the same hotel where then-president Ronald Reagan was shot and injured in 1981. The attack took place on March 30 of that year, when assailant John Hinckley Jr. shot Reagan as he returned to his limousine after a speech inside the hotel. Reagan survived, but was seriously injured after a bullet ricocheted off the side of the presidential limousine and hit him in the torso, breaking a rib and puncturing one of his lungs. A plaque at the hotel marks the location of the attack.

Saturday’s episode is the third time that Trump has found himself the target of some type of threat or attack since his re-election campaign. The most serious previous incident was in July 2024, when the then-candidate was shot in the ear during an outdoor rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Two months later, Secret Service agents captured an armed man hiding at Trump’s golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida. The case was considered an attempted murder, and the suspect was sentenced to life in prison.

Lula and world leaders condemn the attack

The international repercussion was immediate. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was one of the first leaders to speak out publicly. In publication on the platform XLula expressed solidarity with Trump and First Lady Melania and was categorical: “Brazil vehemently repudiates last night’s attack. Political violence is an affront to democratic values ​​that we must all protect.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote in X that he and his wife were shocked by what happened. Netanyahu wished the injured officer a full recovery and praised the US Secret Service for its quick and decisive action.

The president of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, stated that “violence must never be the answer”, wishing Trump and the first lady well. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said that “political violence has no place in any democracy.”

In Europe, French President Emmanuel Macron called the incident “unacceptable” and offered his full support to Trump. Antonio Costa, president of the European Council, considered the night’s events “deeply disturbing” and stated that “political violence has no place in public life”. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he was “shocked”, adding that any attack on democratic institutions or press freedom must be condemned in the strongest terms.

The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, stated that “violence has no place in politics, ever”, thanking the quick action of the police and rescuers. The European Union’s head of diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, said that an event designed to honor press freedom should never become a scene of fear.

In the Middle East, Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority, condemned the incident and expressed total rejection of all forms of violence. The interim president of Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez, also condemned the attempted aggression against Trump and Melania.

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with agency information