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Cole Thomas Allen, 31, the California teacher and engineer who opened fire at a security checkpoint outside the White House Correspondents' Dinner (WHCD) on Saturday.
He told law enforcement following his arrest that he wanted to shoot Trump administration officials, two sources told CBS News Sunday.
Investigators searched his Torrance, California home, and officials prepared to arraign him in federal court on Monday on firearms and assault charges.
The disclosure came on Sunday.
Allen told law enforcement following his arrest that he specifically wanted to shoot Trump administration officials, two sources familiar with the matter told CBS News.
Authorities had not previously disclosed a motive publicly.
The attack occurred as Trump attended the White House Correspondents' Association dinner for the first time as president, joined by First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and hundreds of journalists, cabinet members, and administration officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Health Secretary RFK Jr., and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.
Public records, LinkedIn data, and law enforcement sources identified Allen as a 31-year-old resident of Torrance, an LA suburb of more than 147,000 people, approximately 20 miles south of downtown Los Angeles.
Allen graduated from the California Institute of Technology in 2017 with a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, where he was featured in a local news report for developing an emergency wheelchair brake prototype, and received a master's degree in computer science from California State University, Dominguez Hills, in 2025.
He worked part-time as a teacher at C2 Education, a test prep and tutoring company that named him "Teacher of the Month" in December 2024.
He also described himself as a video game developer and had published an indie game on the Steam platform.
In October 2024, Allen donated $25 to ActBlue, earmarked for Kamala Harris's presidential campaign. He was registered to vote with no party preference.
He had no prior criminal record and was unknown to the Washington, D.C. police.
Allen was armed with a shotgun, a handgun, and multiple knives when he charged the security checkpoint in the lobby of the Washington Hilton at approximately 00:45 GMT.
One uniformed Secret Service officer was struck by shotgun fire but was protected by a bulletproof vest and was described as in good condition.
Trump said Allen was "moving very fast, from 50 yards away," when he charged the checkpoint. Surveillance footage released by Trump on Truth Social showed Allen sprinting through the screening area as agents drew their weapons.
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said Allen was "intent on doing as much harm and as much damage as he could."
The event, attended by approximately 2,600 people, was canceled.
Allen will be arraigned Monday in federal district court on charges including using a firearm during a crime of violence and assaulting a federal officer using a dangerous weapon.
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