The man suspected of attempting to storm the White House Correspondents' Dinner with a shotgun, handgun, and knives has reportedly mocked the security at the event in a manifesto. Cole Tomas Allen, 31, a teacher from Torrance, California, was arrested on Saturday night after trying to bolt past a security checkpoint at the Washington Hilton Hotel.
According to authorities, Allen exchanged gunfire with Secret Service agents before being tackled and handcuffed. One agent was struck in his bulletproof vest but is expected to recover. No other injuries were reported.
Manifesto Details
In a manifesto obtained and published by the New York Post, Allen detailed his reasoning for the attack and his 'rules of engagement.' He expressed surprise at the minimal security measures he encountered.
'What the hell is the Secret Service doing?' Allen wrote. 'I expected security cameras at every bend, bugged hotel rooms, armed agents every 10 feet, metal detectors out the wazoo. What I got (who knows, maybe they’re pranking me!) is nothing.'
Allen described a 'sense of arrogance' at the hotel, noting that security was concentrated outside, leaving the interior vulnerable. 'The security at the event is all outside... because apparently no one thought about what happens if someone checks in the day before,' he wrote.
He further claimed that if he were an Iranian agent, he could have smuggled a 'Ma Deuce'—a nickname for the M2 Browning .50-caliber machine gun—without detection. 'If I was an Iranian agent, instead of an American citizen, I could have brought a damn Ma Deuce in here and no one would have noticed shit,' he ranted.
This is a developing story. More updates will follow.
