It is definitively his bullet.
In the aftermath of a brazen security breach at one of Washington's most ceremonial gatherings, federal prosecutors have answered a question that lingered over the April 25 attack at the White House Correspondents' dinner: the buckshot that struck a Secret Service agent came not from friendly fire, but from the shotgun of Cole Tomas Allen, the 31-year-old California man charged with attempting to assassinate President Trump. Ballistic analysis traced a single pellet to Allen's Mossberg pump-action, found woven into the fiber of the agent's protective vest — a forensic thread that now anchors the government's case as it moves toward trial. The agent survived, and the evidence, prosecutors say, leaves little room for doubt.
- A man armed with guns and knives penetrated security at one of Washington's most high-profile annual events, reaching a ballroom filled with journalists and officials before the attack unfolded.
- For weeks, a critical question haunted investigators: did the buckshot that struck a Secret Service agent come from the suspect, or from the chaos of the security response itself?
- Forensic analysis has now closed that gap — a pellet from Allen's Mossberg shotgun was found physically intertwined with the fibers of the agent's bullet-resistant vest, ruling out friendly fire.
- Allen, facing attempted assassination charges that carry up to life in prison, has been removed from suicide watch as the case moves toward trial and prosecutors build their evidentiary foundation.
- The breach has cast a long shadow over the security protocols surrounding Washington's most prominent public gatherings, with scrutiny intensifying as the trial approaches.
On the evening of April 25, Cole Tomas Allen — a 31-year-old part-time tutor and hobbyist game developer from Torrance, California — moved through security at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner at a Washington hotel, carrying guns and knives. In the chaos that followed his approach toward a ballroom of journalists and officials, a Secret Service agent was struck by buckshot. For weeks afterward, a fundamental question went unanswered: did that shot come from Allen's weapon, or from return fire during the security response?
Federal prosecutors have now provided a definitive answer. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro announced that ballistic analysis traced the buckshot to Allen's Mossberg pump-action shotgun — a single pellet found intertwined with the fibers of the agent's bullet-resistant vest. "It is definitively his bullet," Pirro said, speaking on CNN. The finding eliminates friendly fire as an explanation and gives prosecutors a concrete forensic anchor for their case.
Allen faces charges of attempted assassination of the president along with two firearms counts, including discharging a weapon during a crime of violence — offenses that carry up to life in prison if he is convicted on the lead charge alone. He was injured during the incident but was not shot. The agent he struck survived. On Sunday, his attorneys filed documents indicating he had been removed from suicide watch, though a call to his legal team went unanswered.
The case has drawn intense scrutiny since the night of the attack, exposing a security breach at one of Washington's most prominent annual events. As it moves toward trial, the strength of the government's forensic evidence — and the broader narrative prosecutors are assembling — will face its most rigorous test.
On the evening of April 25, a man with guns and knives moved through security at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner in a Washington hotel, heading toward a ballroom filled with journalists, administration officials, and guests. In the chaos that followed, a Secret Service agent was struck by buckshot. For weeks, the question of where that shot came from—whether it came from the suspect's weapon or from friendly fire during the response—remained unanswered.
Now federal prosecutors have closed that gap. Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, announced that ballistic analysis has definitively linked the buckshot to the gun of Cole Tomas Allen, the man charged in the attack. Speaking on CNN's "State of the Union," Pirro described the forensic finding with precision: a pellet from Allen's Mossberg pump-action shotgun was found intertwined with the fiber of the agent's bullet-resistant vest. "It is definitively his bullet," she said. The determination rules out theories that the officer had been hit by return fire from security personnel.
Allen, 31, is from Torrance, California. He worked part-time as a tutor for a test preparation company and developed video games as a hobby. He remains in custody pending trial, facing charges of attempted assassination of the president, along with two additional firearms counts including discharging a weapon during a crime of violence. If convicted on the assassination charge alone, he faces up to life in prison. During the attack itself, Allen was injured but was not shot. The Secret Service agent he struck survived.
The ballistic evidence represents a significant development in a case that has drawn intense scrutiny because of its setting and its target. The April 25 incident exposed a security breach at one of Washington's most prominent annual events, and questions about the sequence of events and the source of the gunfire have circulated since that night. Pirro's announcement, backed by forensic detail, provides prosecutors with a concrete evidentiary foundation as the case moves toward trial.
On Sunday, Allen's attorneys filed a court document indicating he had been removed from suicide watch and sought to formally withdraw a motion requesting his removal from such supervision. A call to his legal team went unanswered. The next phase of the case will test the strength of the government's forensic evidence and the broader narrative prosecutors are building around the events of that evening.
Notable Quotes
A pellet from the buckshot from the defendant's Mossberg pump-action shotgun was intertwined with the fiber of the vest of the Secret Service officer. It is definitively his bullet.— Jeanine Pirro, U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, on CNN
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
When they say the buckshot was "intertwined with the fiber" of the vest, what does that actually tell us about the sequence of events that night?
It tells us the pellet didn't just graze him or ricochet off the surface. It embedded itself into the material. That's the difference between a glancing contact and a direct hit. It's forensic language for "this came from his gun, fired at close enough range to penetrate."
Why did it take weeks to establish this? Isn't ballistic analysis something they can do quickly?
Usually, yes. But in a crowded, chaotic scene with multiple shooters returning fire, you have to account for every weapon, every round. You're sorting through evidence from the suspect's gun, from security personnel's weapons, from the scene itself. The vest fibers had to be examined, the pellet had to be matched. It's methodical work, not fast work.
The prosecutor made a point of saying there was "no evidence" of friendly fire. Why emphasize that?
Because it matters politically and legally. If a Secret Service agent had been shot by another agent, that's a different story—it raises questions about training, coordination, the fog of the moment. By definitively ruling that out, she's saying the only person responsible for that injury is Allen.
What does his removal from suicide watch suggest about his mental state or his defense?
It could mean he's stabilized, or it could be tactical—his lawyers may have wanted that removed from the record before trial so it doesn't influence how a jury sees him. Suicide watch can imply instability or remorse. Neither helps his case, but neither necessarily proves anything about what he did that night.
He was injured but not shot. Do we know how?
The source doesn't say. Could have been from the struggle, from security tackling him, from shrapnel. That detail hasn't been made public yet.