Investigators have determined that the Secret Service agent wounded during an alleged assassination attempt against President Donald Trump on Saturday was hit by the suspect, not by friendly fire, NBC News reported Wednesday, citing three law enforcement officials familiar with the case.
Justice Department investigators, working with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, determined the suspected gunman, Cole Tomas Allen, 31, fired his shotgun and a round struck the unidentified agent, who was wearing body armor.
The agent was hospitalized but released over the weekend.
A source familiar with the investigation previously told CBS News that six shots were fired when the gunman charged a security checkpoint at the Washington Hilton, where the White House Correspondents' Association dinner was taking place.
The source said one shot was fired by the suspect and five by the Secret Service agent, who was struck in his bulletproof vest.
Two sources familiar with the investigation told CBS News the shot that struck the agent likely hit a cellphone tucked inside a pocket of his bulletproof vest.
Allen was arrested at the scene.
Allen, a teacher and engineer from Torrance, California, made his first court appearance Monday and was charged with attempted assassination of the president, interstate transportation of a firearm and ammunition with intent to commit a felony, and discharging a firearm during a violent crime. He did not enter a plea.
In a court filing Wednesday, prosecutors included selfies Allen took in his hotel room Saturday night at the Washington Hilton, according to NBC News.
The photos were taken before the attack. They showed him standing in front of a hotel room mirror, dressed in black with a red necktie.
According to the filing, the image showed the suspect "wearing a small leather bag consistent in appearance with the ammunition-filled bag later recovered from his person," along with a shoulder holster, a sheathed knife, pliers, and wire cutters.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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