Video Shows Armed Man Scouting D.C. Gala, Then Storming Security

Security video released by prosecutors shows Cole Allen storming a checkpoint at a Washington, D.C., dinner, with authorities saying he fired at a Secret Service agent before being stopped.

May 1, 2026

2 min read

What to know

Federal authorities released security video footage showing a heavily armed man attacking a security checkpoint during a Washington gala attended by President Donald Trump, with the video forming a central piece of the investigation.
Prosecutors say the footage shows the suspect firing at a Secret Service officer and was released to demonstrate that the shooting was not the result of friendly fire.
The suspect, Cole Allen, has been charged with attempting to assassinate the president, and investigators say the video also shows him surveilling the venue a day before the attack.

Source dpa

WASHINGTON—Video footage of an attack at a gala attended by US President Donald Trump in Washington was released by US authorities on Thursday.

At the gala dinner with the capital's press on Saturday, a heavily armed man stormed through a security checkpoint and was overpowered by security forces. Shots were fired and Trump was taken to safety by his bodyguards.

U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said the footage was released to the public to prove there was "no evidence the shooting was the result of friendly fire."

Pirro said the video had been provided to the courts and showed the alleged shooter, Cole Allen, shooting a Secret Service officer.

"The video also shows Allen casing the area in the Hilton Hotel the day before the attack. My office along with the FBI will continue this extensive investigation to bring Cole Allen to justice," she wrote on X.

The video, which includes footage compiled from different days, shows Cole within the venue's gym and walking in a corridor. The clips, some of which are slowed down, sped up or annotated, includes no audio.

Allen was charged on Monday with attempting to assassinate Trump.

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