A 31-year-old man was detained at the scene
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and the King have both expressed relief that Donald Trump was unscathed following a gun incident at a White House Correspondents’ dinner. King Charles said he was “greatly relieved” that the US president, the first lady and other guests at the media dinner were unharmed after a gunman tried to charge the venue.
The King, who begins a four-day US state visit on Monday with Camilla, is being “kept fully informed of developments” after the dinner was thrown into chaos on Saturday. Meanwhile Sir Keir has spoken to Mr Trump to extend his best wishes, with a No10 spokesperson adding: “He expressed his relief that the president and first lady were safe and wished a speedy recovery to the officer injured.”
Video footage from the dinner showed the president stumbling to the ground as he was bundled from the room by secret service agents who also grabbed vice-president JD Vance by the shoulders and escorted him to safety.
Investigators have not publicly named the suspect, but two law enforcement officials familiar with the matter have identified him as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, California.
Law enforcement officials who have examined the gunman’s electronic devices and his writings preliminarily believe he intended to target administration members in attendance at the dinner.
The gunman, who was a guest at the hotel, attempted to charge into the cavernous ballroom but was tackled to the ground in a chaotic scene that resulted in shots being fired.
Mr Trump has called the gunman a “lone wolf wack job”. The suspect now faces charges including assaulting an officer with a dangerous weapon, but it is expected additional charges will be filed.
A Buckingham Palace spokesperson said on Sunday: “His Majesty is being kept fully informed of developments and is greatly relieved to hear that the President, First Lady and all guests have been unharmed.
“As you would expect, a number of discussions will be taking place throughout the day to discuss with US colleagues and our respective teams to what degree the events of Saturday evening may or may not impact on the operational planning for the visit.”
Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister Darren Jones told the BBC‘s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme that discussions on the King’s security during his visit to the United States would take place on Sunday.
Asked if that meant there would be any escalation on what had already been planned, he said: “There’ll be appropriate security in place in relation to the risk.”
The historic visit, the King’s first visit to the US as monarch, will mark the 250th anniversary of American independence and herald the start of celebrations across the US. Charles and Camilla will mark the milestone at a “block-party”.
A Downing Street spokesperson said earlier today: “The Prime Minister spoke to President Trump this afternoon. He extended his best wishes to the president and first lady following the shocking scenes at last night’s White House Correspondents’ dinner.
“He expressed his relief that the president and first lady were safe and wished a speedy recovery to the officer injured.”
Mr Trump survived an attempted assassination in 2024 when he was shot in the right ear by a gunman during a campaign rally.
