Fresh details about the suspect believed to be responsible for a “shooting incident” at the Washington Hilton, where the White House Correspondents’ Dinner was being held on Saturday night, are pouring out.

The FBI and US President Donald Trump’s initially confirmed that a “shooter” had been apprehended. Subsequently, authorities identified the suspected gunman as a man in his 30s from California, according to multiple law enforcement officials cited by CNN.

Thereafter, law enforcement officials told the Associated Press that the shooting suspect was a man named Cole Tomas Allen. The 31-year-old man is believed to be from Torrance, California. According to Metropolitan Police Chief Jeffery Carroll’s statement, the suspect is believed to have been a guest at the hotel hosting the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

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What do we know about the White House dinner shooter?

In a statement shared initially, the FBI formally confirmed on social media that the shooter was in custody and that its Washington field office is responding to the shooting.

Shortly after that, Trump took the podium at a White House press briefing and said the suspect was armed with multiple weapons. Although ultimately stopped by the Secret Service, one officer was shot. The POTUS disclosed the officer was protected by a bulletproof vest, saying, “He was shot from very close distance with a very powerful gun, and the vest did the job.”

The US president also posted security footage of the incident, showing the suspect running through the metal detectors. Law enforcement turned toward him with guns raised, ultimately swarming toward the man off-screen. Pointing to how fast the alleged gunman was moving, Trump said he was a “blur on tape.”

Trump went on to describe the suspect as a “lone wolf,” “whack job,” and “crazy.” The POTUS noted that while the shooter’s motivation was unclear, he added, the suspect “was a guy who looked pretty evil when he was down.”

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During the press conference, Trump heavily emphasised that the shooter was still at a huge distance from the ballroom where thousands had gathered for the annual. “He hadn’t anywhere close to breached the doors of the ballroom,” the president said, having previously acknowledged that the suspect was moving at a fast pace.

According to Wolf Blitzer’s first-hand description of the incident, the CNN journalist was merely feet away from the shooter during the incident at the Washington Hilton. “It was a very, very serious weapon, he starts shooting,” he said, adding that the suspect was forcefully pinned to the ground by law enforcement. “I happened to been a few feet away from him as he was shooting. And of course, the first thing that went through my mind, is he trying to shoot me?”

The Associated Press, meanwhile, previously reported that someone in the crowd claimed to have heard what they believed to be five to eight shots being fired at the hotel.

FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed during the press conference that a long gun and shell casings were recovered from the scene.

Cole Allen’s LinkedIn profile identifies him as California engineer

Although without a profile picture, Cole’s LinkedIn identifies him as a “Game dev, Engineer, Scientist, Teacher” based out of the Los Angeles Metropolitan Area. “Mechanical engineer and computer scientist by degree, independent game developer by experience, teacher by birth,” he writes in his bio.

In a post shared about 11 months, Allen appeared to confirm that he had completed his master’s degree. “*Pretty* sure my Master’s in CS is done!” he wrote at the time, while also sharing a photo of himself wearing the signature graduation cap and gown. His ‘Education’ credits on LinkedIn note that he pursued a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering at California Institute of Technology (Caltech). Thereafter, he finished his Master of Science degree in Computer Science at the California State University-Dominguez Hills (CSUDH).

Furthermore, he has listed himself as a part-time teacher at C2 Education, which helps in college test preparations, tutoring and academic advising. Before his current role, he identified himself as a self-employed ‘Indie Game Developer,’ claiming to have designed and built the shooter game called First Law and a racing game titled Bohrdom. He also worked as a mechanical engineer at IJK Controls and served as a teaching assistant at Calteach years ago.

Charges against White House dinner shooter

US Attorney Jeanine Pirro announced that the suspect had preliminarily been hit with two charges related to using a firearm and assaulting an officer with a dangerous weapons. Nonetheless, she affirmed that many more charges would be filed eventually “based on the information that we are learning in this very fluid situation.”

DC Mayor Muriel Bowser said Cole acted alone on Saturday night.

This is an ongoing investigation.