A day after a man opened fire at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, authorities are analyzing a message sent by the suspected attacker in an attempt to understand what allegedly led him from a life as a respected professor in California to becoming a would-be assassin.
“I would like to begin by apologizing to everyone whose trust I abused,” reads a note that authorities say was sent by the suspect, 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, California, who worked part-time as a teacher and also developed video games, according to public records.
The note, which Allen allegedly sent to family members before the attack, said he, noting, “I do not expect forgiveness.”
The suspect had a penchant for making radical statements as he became involved in left-wing activism in Los Angeles, acquired firearms and began practicing regularly at a shooting range, his sister told authorities, according to the White House.
In recent days, authorities say, that talk has turned into action. He boarded a train in Los Angeles, traveled to Chicago and then to Washington, D.C., where he checked into the downtown hotel he and other senior government officials would host.
He was armed with a .38-caliber semiautomatic pistol and a 12-gauge shotgun, authorities told reporters. CNN.
He then allegedly sent a written statement to family members calling himself the and expressing anti-Trump sentiments before trying to break into the dinner venue on Saturday night (25), bypassing security.
The suspect “” and struck a Secret Service agent wearing a bulletproof vest before he was quickly detained, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told CNN. It happened as Trump and other leaders sought safety inside the nearby ballroom.
Now, authorities are analyzing the statement Cole allegedly sent and his social media history, which Trump described as “anti-Christian”, as he talks to family members and seeks to better understand what motivated him to allegedly commit the violent attack.
“We are still trying to understand the motivation. According to our preliminary investigation, it appears that the suspect was targeting members of the government,” said Blanche.
The note listed a number of complaints in general terms that could lead authorities to this motivation, including outrage over conditions in detention centers and an apparent reference to Trump as a “traitor.”
The suspect in the attack is charged with two counts of illegal possession of a firearm and one count of assaulting a federal agent using a dangerous weapon, according to U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro, who has not released his name publicly.
Blanche said the suspect is not cooperating with authorities.
The suspect’s academic life
Allen attended Caltech (California Institute of Technology) from 2013 to 2017, according to his LinkedIn profile, where he participated in the institution’s Christian Fellowship organization and the Nerf Club. Facebook photos from 2016 also show Allen at Christian Fellowship events at the university.
As a student, Allen was also featured in a local news report in 2017 for developing a prototype emergency brake for wheelchairs.
According to his LinkedIn profile, he graduated in 2017 with a degree in mechanical engineering and was featured in a Caltech graduation announcement published by the university, which included a photo of him as an adult wearing a cardigan and a photo of him as a child, smiling and holding a stuffed rabbit.
After graduating, he got a part-time job teaching at C2 Education, a test prep and tutoring company.
C2 named Allen its “teacher of the month” for December 2024, according to the company’s social media posts. No one answered C2’s phone late Saturday night (25).
He also said he worked as a video game developer and published an indie game called Bohrdom, for sale on the Steam platform for $1.99. He trademarked the game in 2018, according to federal trademark records.
The game is described on Steam as an “asymmetrical, non-violent, skill-based fighting game loosely derived from a chemistry model which is in turn loosely based in reality.”
On his LinkedIn profile, the suspect wrote that he was “currently developing a second game, tentatively named ‘First Law’.”
has been involved in political activism in recent years, according to what his sister, who lives in Rockville, Maryland, reported to authorities, according to the White House.
He joined the left-wing group “The Wide Awakes”, named after the anti-slavery protesters of the 1860s who fought for Abraham Lincoln’s election as president.
According to Federal Election Commission records, Allen donated $25 to Kamala Harris’ October 2024 presidential campaign.
ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives) investigators found records indicating that on October 6, 2023, Allen purchased a .38 caliber semi-automatic pistol at a store in Southern California.
On August 17, 2025, Allen purchased a 12-gauge shotgun at another gun store in his hometown of Torrance.
In both cases, the suspect had to provide his information for a background check by the FBI to determine that he was not wanted, that there was not a restraining order against him, and that he was not a convicted felon.
After his train ride from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the suspect checked in at the Washington Hilton, which hosts the annual correspondents’ dinner.
The note left for the family
On Saturday night (25), the White House reported that he sent family members messages in which he “clearly stated that he wanted to attack government officials.”
The message apologized to parents, colleagues and students, and said he did not intend to specifically attack law enforcement, although it added: “I would still go past almost everyone here to get to the targets if I absolutely had to.”
In the message, the suspect argued that his attack did not conflict with Christian values, writing: “Turn the other cheek when somebody is oppressed is not Christian behavior; It is complicity in the oppressor’s crimes.”
The note ended on an angry note: “I feel angry thinking about everything this administration has done.”
After receiving the message, his brother contacted the New London Police Department in Connecticut to express his concern, and other family members contacted law enforcement agencies.
Inside the hotel, the suspect advanced through a security checkpoint outside the ballroom. The Secret Service agent hit in the attack was treated and released from the hospital, authorities said.
Subsequently, authorities began working to reconstruct Allen’s movements and his possible motives; Secret Service and Montgomery County Police agents interviewed the suspect’s sister in Rockville, the White House said, and
Police tape was placed across part of the street and a spotlight was shined on the house. Several reporters were gathered at the scene and news helicopters were flying overhead.
A neighbor, who did not want to be identified, told the CNN that he was unsure whether Allen lived on the property. He reported that they didn’t see him often, but that Allen was there “a few days ago.”
It was also said that the suspect’s father is friendly and talkative, adding that they talked often.
