Washington — Authorities have determined that a gunshot came from the gun of the man accused of an attempted break-in White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner In an attempt to kill President Donald Trump, he struck a Secret Service agent, according to the federal prosecutor overseeing the investigation.
Jeanine Pirro, US Attorney for the District of Columbia, said last week that there was no evidence that the agent was hit by friendly fire during the incident at a Washington hotel on April 25, but she went further on Sunday by saying that a bullet from one of Cole Thomas Allen’s weapons struck the officer’s bullet-resistant vest.
“We can now prove that the bullet that came from the defendant’s Mossberg rifle was entangled in the fibers of the Secret Service officer’s jacket,” she told CNN’s “State of the Union.” “It’s definitely his bullet.”
Allen, who remains behind bars awaiting trial, was injured during the attack but was not shot. The officer survived.
On Thursday, Pirro posted a Video on social media The moment authorities say a man carrying guns and knives tried to storm a party shows media. Questions remained about whose bullet hit the officer while the suspect was running through security with a long gun toward the hall filled with journalists, administration officials and others.
A phone call to attorneys representing Allen was not returned Sunday.
Allen is charged with attempted assassination of the president, as well as two additional firearms charges, including discharging a weapon during a crime of violence. He faces life imprisonment if convicted of the assassination charge alone.
Allen, 31, is from Torrance, California. He works as a part-time tutor at a test preparation company and is a hobbyist video game developer.