Suspect in correspondents' dinner shooting to face more charges: US attorney

The US attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro, said Monday that federal authorities expect to file additional charges against the man suspected of targeting the White House Correspondents' Dinner as the investigation continues to unfold.

Cole Tomas Allen, the suspect in Saturday's shooting at the gala, was arraigned Monday in federal court on charges including the attempted assassination of US President Donald Trump.

“There will be additional charges as this investigation continues to unfold,” Pirro told reporters, describing Allen's arsenal of a shotgun, semi-automatic weapons, and multiple knives as proof of his intent to do harm.

She emphasized that any claim the suspect was not there to commit violence is "absurd."

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the Department of Justice filed three federal counts, noting that the first count of attempted assassination of a US president is punishable by up to life in prison. He said the charges also include interstate transportation of a firearm and discharging a weapon during a crime of violence, the latter carrying a mandatory minimum of 10 years to be served consecutively.

Blanche asserted that law enforcement "did exactly what they are trained to do" and prevented a planned attack.

FBI Director Kash Patel said that the agency launched an "enterprise-wide response," conducting interviews and executing search warrants in California and Connecticut.

He credited the Secret Service with preventing Allen from entering the ballroom, asserting they "stopped a massive attack from becoming even worse."

Patel added that there are currently no other credible threats to the city.

Allen will remain detained pending a hearing on longer-term detention scheduled for Thursday.

Allen, a 31-year-old California man, was apprehended Saturday after rushing a Secret Service checkpoint at the Washington Hilton Hotel, where the annual dinner was being held.