BREAKING: Suspected WHCD gunman identified

David at the White House for us. He has the very latest, I guess, on the investigation, which is not only ongoing at this hour, it seems to be advancing just a bit, David.

Kevin and Alicia, it is. I spoke to two law enforcement sources briefed on this evolving investigation. The suspect's name is Cole Allen, 31 years old. He's from Torrance, California, Southern California. We know that the FBI going through his apartment right now. We're told that he may have been a guest at the hotel. That's been reported as well.

We're going to get a little bit more details there, but that is a picture that you see on the screen next to me of Cole Allen. Per two senior law enforcement sources briefed on this matter. They're going, as I said, through the apartment, through cell phones to see who he may have spoken to, to see if anybody was aware of this. So, he's 31 from Southern California.

Still so many questions, though, that we are waiting for this hour as we are approaching the midnight hour. You heard the US Attorney Jeanine Pirro announce some of the charges. She said more charges will be filed in federal court. Also, Todd Blanch, the acting attorney general, was at the White House behind me as President

Trump and members of his cabinet briefed the press. And he said that there would be more as this happens. So I suspect that we will learn more about this suspect as the days come out. But I will note that this is extraordinarily a short period of time to not only find out the name of a suspect, but see a picture, see surveillance video.

I mean, this was all done within an hour or so of that incident that happened. And that's because the president of the United States and all of the top law enforcement officials wanted to make this public and be transparent so people could see what was going on and what happened.

Kevin Alicia. David, that really was an incredible thing that the president was sharing this with us in real time as quickly as he could. He was getting it out to us. One note on something that came out of the news conference with law enforcement, the interim police chief for D.C. did say that the suspect was staying in a room at the hotel and that that room had been secured.

And then additionally, we were told that the suspect had a long gun, a handgun, and multiple knives. And all of that is so incredibly frightening when you just think about the fact that law enforcement says the suspect was in the hotel. And David, I don't know if you know this or not,

but how does it work when you have this event and multiple events in this very specific hotel with dignitaries, and you have also guests there that have nothing to do with that event? What are the security protocols? Do you know how that works?

Well, I don't want to speculate. I don't know specifically how it would work each time, but I'll tell you this. Gun laws in Washington, D.C., the nation's capital, are incredibly tight, are incredibly strict. So, to think that, yes, he may have been a guest at the hotel, as the interim police chief said, and, yes, he may have had guns on him, it's curious to see, number one, how

that would have happened, and, number two, what the security protocol was like for guests, knowing that the president of the United States, the vice president, pretty much the entire cabinet was there. I said earlier when I was on the phone shortly after this happened, because I was in the room when it happened and heard four of those gunshots, about a half of a floor or a floor up from where we were. That was the most secure room in the world, one could argue,

at that exact time, because the president of the United States, the vice president, the cabinet was in there. There were helicopters above. And this was before that even took place, before any shots were fired. It was just such a secure room. So it's a very important question you asked.

And those questions do need to be asked to the hotel and to local law enforcement, federal law enforcement about the security posture at that hotel, given the fact that he was a guest. But I do know that D.C. gun laws are extraordinarily tight. It doesn't mean that he could not have potentially smuggled a gun inside. We'd have to see how long he was staying there for.

But security was tight, because this was something that was on the books for a long time and President Trump had committed to coming to this several weeks ago. Alicia.

David, let me jump in here really quickly. Thank you, Alicia. You know, when I think about some of the coverage that I've seen tonight, the question has been, I think, a fairly decent one, and that is what can be done moving forward to ensure the safety not just of the president and of the dignitaries, but obviously of the attendees as well.

And yet, I think as this investigation moves along, one of the more important aspects just might be how we can at the very least continue to surveil everyone who comes in and out of that particular facility because I think there are a lot of people who feel very strongly David that this hotel has history and unless and until there is for example a secure ballroom at the White House that can house this many people at a major event

there has to be a lot more done and those are conversations that have to take place immediately and in a fulsome way moving forward. I think you would agree.

I would agree and I will add that you know this hotel for people that don't know is the hotel where just outside downstairs Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981 and many people remember that that was outside that was a different circumstance it was a different circumstance. It was a different entrance. But that was where President Reagan was shot. So the hotel absolutely had history. And, you know, there certainly will be a full review of this going forward. This is where the dinner has been held for decades. It's not clear if the dinner will be continuing to be held here in the future. But it's a location that could fit all of those people. I mean, it was massive, but I will say being inside tonight, it did feel about as packed

as it felt since I've been going to that dinner. I mean, you could see that just about every person was in there and every table they could have fit, I should say, was in there and people were sitting almost against the walls in the back probably further than they have been before. So the security protocols are something that authorities need to look at. Kevin.

And, David, can you talk to us a little bit about where you think this investigation goes? It's just getting started. We know that they're in the apartment, as you reported, in Torrance, California, about who this person, the suspect, Cole Allen, is, if he had any public ideologies that he'd shared on social media, anybody he knew, they're calling him a lone gunman

right now, law enforcement. Where does this go?

Well, they're talking to people that know him. They're gonna check social media posts. They're gonna take those ballistics. They're gonna take the bullets to the crime lab, the FBI crime lab in Quantico, which is about 20 minutes, 25, 30, with no traffic in Washington, D.C., just outside D.C. and northern Virginia.

So that's where they take all of that. That is the best of the best who works. Those are the best of the best who work at Quantico. As far as the charges are concerned, D.C. is unique because it's not a state, it's a city, but it's within a federal district, the District of Columbia. So federal charges almost certainly will be filed in this case. And I think just from seeing what we've

seen tonight over the past hour or so, when President Trump took the podium behind me in the press briefing room, again, it's truly something to see the video in the pictures and and and have all of this information about this person so soon so I suspect these charges will be Escalated as far as the speed of the charges is speed of the timetable a law enforcement Sometimes law is slow. Sometimes justice can be slow, but I have a feeling in this case things will be sped up. David, I know you to be a tough guy. I'm just curious in the moments when everything was unfolding, what was going through your mind? Well, I was talking to a colleague of mine and

we were just having a regular conversation. She was sitting next to me and I heard four pops, pop, pop, pop, pop. And a lot of people started screaming and said, get down, there's a gun. So immediately got down on the floor, made sure my colleagues were on the floor, made sure everybody was down and secure. And we didn't move until we really could hear people

going through to make sure that everybody was safe. I saw the FBI director, Kash Patel, he was being escorted out when I was able to get up from the floor to see what was going on. And it was chaotic. I mean, no question it was chaotic. But in the end, we're thankful that nobody was hurt inside and we're thankful that the

officer is okay. You know, David, in the immediate moments when all of this was unfolding, we were hearing conflicting reports that this was going to continue, that the event was going to continue, the president wanted to go back out there and make his speech, that basically that the show was going to go on. And then we heard, no, it's going to be canceled. So it became kind of evident that there was negotiation going on between the president and the Secret Service over exactly what was possible here, right?

Because he wants to show the American public that he's still standing once again. So that brings me to the next event that he says is going to happen within the next 30 days. He hopes that there will be another White House correspondents' dinner where you can actually have dinner and hear what he has to say.

How tough is that going to be to pull off? Yeah. Well, it's going to be difficult because the White House Correspondents Association, who works incredibly hard, and the board, Jackie, and everybody on that board worked so hard all year to put this on. They put everything on tonight. Everything, the money was spent, the dinners were there, things were done. I mean, this was the night. So to get that together in 30 days might be difficult, but it's something the president said he wants. I suspect that he spoke to members of the board as well and, you know, who want to do it.

So that's the goal is to get it done. But the reason that he did not come back out tonight, even though he wanted to, as he said in the briefing room, is because it just was too dangerous. The Secret Service and probably some of his aides were concerned that there could have been somebody else. I mean, when that's happening that quickly, now we know a little bit more. Tomorrow we'll know even more about this suspect.

But as it's happening and you're 30, 45 minutes out, you don't know if there could be another shooter or another attacker. So you have to be careful, and that's why that decision was made.

David, we're looking at pictures of the video that the White House released, some of the security footage. What struck you in watching how quickly the gunman tried to rush past the mags and how quickly the team sprung into action.

Incredibly quickly. He was going for it. He was ready to go for it. And those Secret Service officers and officers were there. They were incredibly brave, and they jumped into action. And we're glad that that officer's OK, that that was hit.

The officer was hit. His bullet-resistant or bulletproof vest was hit. And we're glad that that person is okay, that that was hit. The officer was hit. His bullet-resistant or bulletproof vest was hit, and we're glad that that person's okay. But, yeah, it just shows you what these people deal with. On the stage, President Trump and Vice President Vance and the First Lady, they were all taken to safety,

and immediately you saw agents with long guns and shotguns, rifles, come to the stage just seconds after it sounded, those gunshots sounded. So they were ready, and they are ready.

Incredible reaction. Alicia.

Yeah, and David, I think this week coming up, it's going to be very interesting in Washington. When it comes to the conversations, Bill Maluzian pointed out very early on when all of this was unfolding that as of right now, the U.S. Secret Service under the DHS is not funded, is not fully funded. There are some front-line agents that are being paid. They're getting money from the big, beautiful bill.

But there are many people behind the scenes who are not. And I have to imagine that tonight that changes at least some of the conversations, if not some sort of action, maybe going forward?

Well, it certainly may do that, no question, because, yes, part of the Secret Service has been without funds, and that clearly is something that I think lawmakers on both sides will talk about. Something else that's very important to mention is that on Monday, King Charles and Queen Camilla

are coming over from the United Kingdom. And they are going to come here for a state visit for several days. And they're going to be in Washington. Sure, they're going to be at the White House behind me. Things are secure here. But they also have plans to go to New York and meet with everyday people.

They have plans to go to Virginia, a national park in northern Virginia, and see local people there. So you know I suspect that the Secret Service is going to work on that plan and really come together and talk a little bit more now that this happened tonight given the fact not only that they've gone without funds but the fact that the King and Queen will be here in

just a few days. Great reporting as always David Splunt for us over at the White House.

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