COLE Tomas Allen’s family has unveiled his plans to “fix” the world after the harrowing shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
Before Saturday’s attack at the Hilton – where and other officials had gathered – , apologising for what he was about to do.
A driver’s license photo of Cole Tomas Allen Credit: Supplied`
The suspect in custody after attempting to enter the ballroom with guns and knives during the White House Correspondents Dinner Credit: Alamy
Calling himself the “Friendly Federal Assassin,” he wrote to his parents and friends that he does not expect forgiveness, an administration official told NBC News.
“I apologise to everyone….who suffered before I was able to attempt this, to all who may still suffer after, regardless of my success or failure,” Allen said, adding that he said he may have given “a lot of people a surprise today.”
It was his brother who alerted of the bloodcurdling writings – which did not specifically mention , also attended by – minutes before .
Allen’s sister described him to police as having a tendency towards making radical comments.
His rhetoric referenced a plan to do “something,” she told investigators.
The would-be assassin regularly visited the shooting range to train with his firearms, and was part of a group named “The Wide Awakes,” she said.
Her brother had previously attended a “No Kings” anti-Trump protest in .
Meanwhile, the White House said Allen’s social media heavily reflects anti-Trump and anti-Christian rhetoric.
The US President told Fox News that the suspect was “a sick guy” and that his family previously expressed concerns about him.
“When you read his manifesto, he hates Christians,” Trump added today.
It comes as…
- The suspected shooter Cole Tomas Allen has been arrested
- Trump posted chilling footage of the “gunman” charging the venue
- The FBI raid home of shooter
- Dramatic video shows how Melania bravely alerted Trump
- The Sun’s Harry Cole reveals how he was just feet away from the chaos
- as she flees dinner after husband’s killing
- The Sun takes a look at how the shooting unfolded
Allen’s alleged manifesto has since been leaked to the press, revealing his “targets” – prioritised from highest-ranking to lowest, the New York Post reported.
“I am no longer willing to permit a paedophile, rapist, and traitor to coat my hands with his crimes,” he wrote, apparently referring to Trump.
It added: “Turning the other cheek is for when you yourself are oppressed.
“I’m not the person raped in a detention camp. I’m not the fisherman executed without trial.
“I’m not a schoolkid blown up, or a child starved, or a teenage girl abused by the many criminals in this administration.”
His manifesto mocked the , where the dinner was held, an official added.
“Like, the one thing that I immediately noticed walking into the hotel is the sense of arrogance,” the manifesto’s author reportedly wrote.
“I walk in with multiple weapons and not a single person there considers the possibility that I could be a threat.”
Capping off the manifesto, Allen offers a peek into his frame of mind as he prepared to .
“Oh, and if anyone is curious is how doing something like feels: it’s awful. I want to throw up; I want to cry for all the things I wanted to do and never will, for all the people whose trust this betrays; I experience rage thinking about everything this administration has done,” he wrote.
Allen signed it “Cole ‘coldForce’ ‘Friendly Federal Assassin’ Allen.”
Little was immediately known about the 31-year-old’s background, but social media postings suggested he was a teacher in Torrance, near Los Angeles.
Allen attended Pacific Lutheran High School in Gardena, California, where he was known for his inquisitiveness and intellect, a former volleyball teammate told NBC News .
While he had not seen him recently, he remembered Allen as a “borderline genius” and “super stable.”
“Across the board, he was really knowledgeable, really curious,” they added.
US Attorney General Todd Blanche told NBC that the suspect travelled by train from to and then to Washington.
Washington Interim Police Chief Jeffery Carroll said he was armed with a shotgun, a handgun and multiple knives.
He remains in custody facing several charges and is not cooperating with officials, Blanche added.
Earlier today, Trump said he himself was undoubtedly the target.
The presidency is “a dangerous profession,” he said, noting that violence associated with had escalated in the US and around the world.
“No country is immune,” he added, before suggesting it was a sign of how successful his presidency has been.
“I’ve studied assassinations, and I must tell you the most impactful people – the people who do the most, take a look at Abraham Lincoln,” Trump said.
He added: “The people that make the biggest impact, they’re the ones that they go after. They don’t go after the ones that don’t do much.”
Trump makes remarks in the James S Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House after the attack Credit: Alamy
Shattered glass at the Washington Hilton hotel Credit: Reuters
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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