A federal grand jury has formally indicted the man accused of trying to assassinate President Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner last month.

Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, now faces four federal counts filed May 5 in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Three of the charges mirror those in the original criminal complaint. The fourth is new: assaulting a U.S. Secret Service officer with a deadly weapon.

Allen allegedly rushed a security checkpoint at the Washington Hilton on the evening of April 25, ran through a magnetometer carrying a shotgun, and shot a Secret Service officer once in the chest. The officer was wearing a ballistic vest and survived. Allen faces the possibility of life in prison.

The federal grand jury indictment lays out all four counts in black and white:

COUNT ONE: On or about April 25, 2026, in the District of Columbia, the defendant, COLE TOMAS ALLEN, did knowingly attempt to kill the President of the United States, Donald J. Trump. (Attempt to Assassinate the President of the United States, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1751(c))

COUNT TWO: On or about April 25, 2026, in the District of Columbia, defendant COLE TOMAS ALLEN did knowingly and by means and use of a deadly and dangerous weapon, that is a shotgun, forcibly assault, intimidate, and interfere with V.G., an officer and employee of the United States, while V.G. was engaged in his official duties and on account of the performance of his official duties. (Assaulting an Officer or Employee of the United States with a Deadly Weapon, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 111(a)(1) & (b))

COUNT THREE: Between on or about April 21, 2026, and on or about April 25, 2026, defendant COLE TOMAS ALLEN did knowingly transport in interstate commerce a Mossberg Maverick 88 12-gauge pump action shotgun, a Rock Island Armory 1911 .38-caliber semi-automatic pistol, approximately 45 rounds of 12-gauge shotgun ammunition, and approximately 55 rounds of .38-caliber handgun ammunition from the State of California to Washington D.C. with the intent to commit an offense punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year.

COUNT FOUR: On or about April 25, 2026, defendant COLE TOMAS ALLEN did knowingly use, carry, brandish, and discharge a firearm during and in relation to, and in furtherance of, a crime of violence, for which he may be prosecuted in a court of the United States, that is, Count One and Count Two of this Indictment.

Count Two is the new addition. The original criminal complaint filed April 27 charged Allen with the attempted assassination, the interstate firearms transportation, and the discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence. The grand jury added the assault charge for what Allen allegedly did to the officer identified only as V.G.

The timeline laid out in the FBI affidavit makes clear this was not a spontaneous act. Allen allegedly booked a room at the Washington Hilton on April 6, nearly three weeks before the dinner. He then traveled by train from the Los Angeles area to Chicago, arriving on or about April 23, before boarding another train that brought him to Washington, D.C. on April 24. He checked into the Hilton at approximately 3:00 p.m. that afternoon and stayed overnight:

On April 25, 2026, the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner was held at the Washington Hilton hotel located at 1919 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C. Multiple high-ranking U.S. government officials attended and were featured at the Dinner, including President of the United States Donald J. Trump, the Vice President of the United States, and multiple Cabinet Secretaries.

More than seven weeks earlier, on March 2, 2026, President Trump publicly announced that he would attend the Dinner, posting on his Truth Social account: “The White House Correspondents Association has asked me, very nicely, to be the Honoree at this year’s Dinner, a long and storied tradition since it began in 1924, under then President Calvin Coolidge.” President Trump added that it would be his honor to accept the invitation. The March 2, 2026 post was publicized by various media outlets.

On or about April 6, 2026, ALLEN made a hotel reservation at the Washington Hilton hotel for three nights, from April 24 to April 26, 2026.

President Trump arrived at the dinner at approximately 8:00 p.m. on April 25, accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump. The dinner was held in a ballroom on the Concourse Level of the hotel.

Roughly 40 minutes later, the attack began.

The FBI affidavit describes what happened at the checkpoint in chilling detail:

At approximately 8:40 p.m., ALLEN approached a security checkpoint on the Terrace Level of the hotel leading to the location of the dinner. ALLEN approached and ran through the magnetometer holding a long gun. As he did so, U.S. Secret Service personnel assigned to the checkpoint heard a loud gunshot. U.S. Secret Service Officer V.G. was shot once in the chest; Officer V.G. was wearing a ballistic vest at the time.

Officer V.G. drew his service weapon and fired multiple times at ALLEN, who fell to the ground and suffered minor injuries but was not shot. ALLEN was subsequently arrested. At the time of his arrest, ALLEN was in possession of a 12-gauge pump action shotgun and a Rock Island Armory 1911 .38 caliber pistol on his person.

Following his arrest, ALLEN was advised of his Miranda rights and invoked his right to remain silent.

The affidavit also notes that shortly before the attack, Allen sent a scheduled email to family members and a former employer. “I wish I could have said anything earlier, but doing so would have made none of this possible. My sincerest apologies for all the trouble I’ve caused,” the email read. Allen signed it with his name and the self-given titles “coldForce” and “Friendly Federal Assassin.”

The Department of Justice announced the original charges on April 27, describing Allen as a 31-year-old from Torrance, California, who had been charged by complaint with the attempted assassination, interstate transportation of firearms with intent to commit a felony, and discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence.

The grand jury indictment, filed under Case 1:26-cr-00098-TNM, supersedes that complaint and adds the assault on the Secret Service officer as Count Two. Allen has not been convicted and is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

A Secret Service officer took a shotgun blast to the chest and stayed in the fight. The federal case against Cole Tomas Allen now moves forward with a grand jury indictment behind it and some of the most serious charges a defendant can face.

This is a Guest Post from our friends over at WLTReport. View the original article here.
 

Join The Conversation. Leave a Comment.