WASHINGTON — A major security scare disrupted the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on the night of April 25, 2026, after an armed man tried to rush a checkpoint at the Washington Hilton. President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, senior officials, lawmakers, and hundreds of journalists were evacuated as Secret Service agents stopped the suspect before he reached the ballroom.
The annual dinner, sometimes called the “Nerd Prom,” had been under way only a short time after the president and first lady arrived when the incident began. Federal authorities said 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, California — a Caltech graduate who had worked as a teacher and video-game developer — ran through a magnetometer on an upper level of the hotel while carrying a shotgun, a handgun, and multiple knives.
Agents confronted him in the lobby area leading toward the main ballroom. A struggle followed and gunfire erupted. One Secret Service officer was struck in the chest at close range; a ballistic vest stopped the round, and the officer was taken to a hospital in stable condition. Allen was tackled, suffered minor injuries, and was taken into federal custody. No guests inside the ballroom were reported struck.
Security teams then ordered a full evacuation while officers swept the hotel. Organizers briefly considered restarting the program, but the White House Correspondents’ Association canceled the rest of the evening, citing ongoing security concerns. Officials later said the dinner would be rescheduled with tighter measures.
President Trump praised the Secret Service for acting quickly and preventing a worse outcome. Investigators said Allen had traveled by train from California, checked into the hotel as a guest, and appeared to have acted alone. Authorities searched his California home and reviewed writings he sent to family members shortly before the confrontation. They said they had found no immediate evidence of a wider plot.
Allen was later charged with attempting to assassinate the president and related firearms offenses. The case intensified scrutiny of how an armed suspect came so close to one of Washington’s most closely guarded annual gatherings, prompting a broader review of security at major political events in the capital.
