Investigators on Sunday said the gunman who tried to storm a gala dinner attended by Donald Trump planned to assassinate the US president and other top officials, as scrutiny grew over the event’s security.
Trump, who was rushed out of the hotel ballroom in Washington by Secret Service agents, posted surveillance footage of the gunman attempting to sprint past a security checkpoint.
After a brief exchange of gunfire with agents, the suspect was detained at the scene and was being questioned Sunday before he is due to appear in court the following day.
Trump shared photos of the suspect handcuffed on the carpeted hotel floor.
“He’s not actively cooperating. I expect that he will be formally charged tomorrow morning in federal court in Washington,” acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche told CBS’s “Face The Nation” on Sunday.
“We do believe, based upon just a very preliminary start to understanding what happened, that he was targeting members of the administration.”
Blanche added no further motive was known for the attack, confirming the suspect — who was armed with a shotgun, handgun and knives — was staying at the Washington Hilton hotel where the black-tie dinner was held on Saturday evening.
“We believe that he traveled by train from Los Angeles to Chicago, and then from Chicago to Washington,” Blanche said. “It appears he purchased these firearms in the past couple years.”
- Suspect stayed at hotel venue –
Trump, without providing details, said the gunman had written an “anti-Christian” manifesto.
“The guy is a sick guy,” Trump told Fox News. “His sister or his brother actually was complaining about it. They were even complaining to law enforcement.”
The New York Post said the suspect, widely named as Cole Allen, 31, had written in a note shared with his family shortly before the attack that his targets would be “prioritized from highest-ranking to lowest.”
