The alleged White House Correspondents' Dinner gunman was targeting President Donald Trump and members of his administration, acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Sunday.
Mr Trump and other officials were rushed to safety on Saturday night when the gunman sprinted past a security checkpoint and opened fire outside the gala hosting about 2,500 journalists and other guests in a Washington hotel.
“It does appear that he [the suspected gunman] did, in fact, set out to target folks that work in the administration, likely including the President,” Mr Blanche told NBC's Meet the Press.
He added that the suspect, identified as Cole Tomas Allen of California, was thought to have travelled by train from Los Angeles to Chicago and on to Washington.
Mr Allen will be charged in federal court on Monday with assault of a federal officer and discharging a firearm in an attempt to kill a federal officer, Mr Blanche said.
The suspect was not co-operating with investigators as of Sunday morning. Mr Blanche said no connection linking the shooting to any particular administration policy has been established.
In an address from the White House, Mr Trump said the gunman was a “sick person” who seemed to be acting as a “lone wolf”.
Washington interim police chief Jeffery Carroll said the suspect had been armed with a shotgun, a handgun and several knives. He was taken to hospital to be assessed, but it was too soon to say what his motive was, Mr Carroll said. He was believed to have been a guest at the hotel.
Mr Allen, 31, is thought to be a resident of Torrance, California. A LinkedIn profile believed to belong to Mr Allen describes him as a “mechanical engineer and computer scientist by degree, independent game developer by experience, teacher by birth”.
Mr Trump has been the target of two assassination attempts, both of which took place before he returned to office in January last year.
In July 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania, a lone gunman opened fire on a stage as Mr Trump was speaking at a campaign rally, killing one person and injuring several others, including the current President. Months later, a man hid in the bushes of a Florida golf course with a semi-automatic rifle in a bid to assassinate Mr Trump.
In a Truth Social post on Sunday, Mr Trump said the incident highlighted the need for a new ballroom to be built on the grounds of the White House.
The President last year ordered the tearing down of the White House's East Wing to make way for a ballroom that will reportedly cost about $400 million. A federal lawsuit filed by the National Trust for Historic Preservation aims to prevent its construction.
“It cannot be built fast enough!” Mr Trump wrote.
