WASHINGTON, April 26 — The man arrested over the shooting incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner has been identified as Cole Tomas Allen, a 31-year-old from the Los Angeles area, according to a law enforcement official cited by Reuters.
Allen is believed to be a resident of Torrance, a coastal city in California’s South Bay region near Los Angeles.
Authorities are still working to establish a motive. The chief of the District of Columbia police department said investigators believe Allen had been a guest at the Washington Hilton hotel, where the annual dinner was being held when the shooting occurred.
Social media and online profiles linked to Allen suggest he has an academic and technical background. A LinkedIn page in his name describes him as a “mechanical engineer and computer scientist by degree, independent game developer by experience, teacher by birth.”
According to the profile, he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology in 2017, and later obtained a master’s degree in computer science from California State University, Dominguez Hills in 2025. Caltech said a person with that name did graduate in 2017.
His listed work experience includes several years as a part-time teacher with C2 Education, a private tutoring and test-preparation provider, alongside work as a self-employed game developer. He was also reportedly named “Teacher of the Month” by the company’s Torrance branch in December 2024.
Earlier roles included a stint as a mechanical engineer at IJK Controls in South Pasadena, as well as a teaching assistant position during his time at Caltech.
Other details on the profile include participation in a robotics competition at Caltech in 2016, and an interest in “Science and Technology” listed under personal causes.
The United States Secret Service said Allen was armed with a shotgun and was detained after allegedly opening fire at an agent inside the Washington Hilton Hotel, just outside the ballroom where the event was attended by President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance and other senior officials.
No dignitaries were reported injured in the incident. Investigations are ongoing.
Who is Cole Allen? What we know about suspect in White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting
