A gunman attempted to force his way into the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday evening, which Donald Trump was attending for the first time. The US president, along with numerous other officials, was evacuated, and a law enforcement officer was wounded by gunfire. The suspect was arrested and will appear in court on Monday.
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Donald Trump referred to the act of a "potential assassin" on Saturday, April 25, after a gunman attempted to force his way into a gala attended by the US president and was subsequently arrested after shooting a law enforcement officer.
"This is not the first time in recent years that our Republic has been attacked by a potential assassin who was seeking to kill," said Donald Trump, still wearing a tuxedo, during a press conference at the White House approximately two hours after the incident.
Facing him were journalists in bow ties and evening gowns, who, like him, had attended this annual dinner bringing together the cream of the political and media elite in Washington.
The American president specified that a member of law enforcement had been shot. He described the assailant, whose identity was not immediately released, as a "lone wolf" and a "crazy person."
The suspected gunman will appear in court on Monday, US authorities announced at a press conference. He will be charged with two counts: first, using a firearm during a violent crime, and second, assaulting a federal agent with a dangerous weapon, Washington, D.C., Attorney General Jeanine Pirro stated.
Daniel police reported that, according to preliminary information, the suspect had booked a room at the hotel.
The assailant was carrying two firearms and several knives. He was not shot during his arrest.
Shortly before his press briefing, Donald Trump posted security camera footage on his Truth Social network showing a person rushing through the metal detector at the entrance to the venue where the gala was being held, and several law enforcement officers drawing their weapons.
“It was, in a way, very beautiful, really a very beautiful thing to see a man drive toward a security checkpoint armed with multiple weapons, and he was neutralized by some very brave members of the Secret Service, who acted very quickly,” the US president said, referring to the service responsible for his security.
The Washington Hilton Hotel, where the aborted dinner was taking place, is not “a particularly secure building,” Donald Trump criticized. He did, however, acknowledge that the security arrangements “were very secure,” indicating that the gunman had been stopped before entering the large reception hall where he was located. It was in front of this hotel that President Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981 during an assassination attempt.
The hall was evacuated.
The annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner had just begun, according to AFP journalists present, when a great commotion was heard at the doors of the hall. Shouts of "Get down! Get down!" rang out.
The guests immediately lay down or knelt on the floor, many of them holding up their phones to film, while the president and first lady Melania Trump, seated at the head table on a raised platform facing the guests, were evacuated.
Secret Service agents, the agency responsible for protecting the president and members of the administration, entered the room, heavily armed. Law enforcement then ordered the guests, journalists, cabinet members, politicians, and other dignitaries to leave the vast room located on the first basement level of the hotel.
In an AFP video, President Trump can be seen seated at the head table, with, among others, Vice President J.D. Vance and his press secretary Karoline Leavitt, as well as several journalists, as muffled bangs are heard, initially eliciting no reaction. It was only after a few seconds that the guests seemed to realize something had happened, Melania Trump's face appearing distressed.
Heavily armed security agents intervened very quickly and escorted the president to the left side of the stage. The background music stopped, as other agents climbed over the table and appeared to have their weapons drawn on the audience.
Police officers then surrounded the venue, and helicopters circled overhead in the center of the capital.
The White House Correspondents' Association (WHCA) organizes this major political and media event, which brings together hundreds of people every spring and which Donald Trump, who relentlessly attacks the press, was attending for the very first time as president.
With AFP
