The Department of Justice has released a selfie photograph of heavily-armed Cole Tomas Allen, in his Washington Hilton hotel room, shortly before he allegedly opened fire at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, Saturday night.
Allen was charged Monday with attempting to assassinate the president of the United States, transportation of a firearm and ammunition through interstate commerce with intent to commit a felony, and discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence.
In its “Government’s Memorandum in Support of Pretrial Detention,” ahead of Thursday’s detention hearing in U.S. District Court, Justice Department attorneys wrote, “Had the defendant achieved his intended outcome, he would have brought about one of the darkest days in American history.”
According to the government, the photo was taken at 8:03 p.m. It shows Allen in a black dress shirt, black slacks and a red necktie tucked into his pants behind his belt.
He was also wearing a small leather bag, a shoulder holster, a sheathed knife “consistent in appearance with one of the knives later recovered from his person,” as well as pliers and wire cutters that he was carrying when he was taken into custody, according to prosecutors.
While he was traveling from Los Angeles to Chicago, before boarding a second train for D.C., Allen used his cellphone to access articles about the upcoming dinner.
Shortly after arriving at Union Station at 1:10 p.m. on Friday, April 24, Allen purchased a Metro Smartcard with a three-day bus rail pass.
“He then traveled by metro train from Union Station to Dupont Circle and checked into the Washington Hilton at approximately 3:15 p.m.,” according to the motion submitted by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro.
In its argument against pretrial release of Allen, prosecutors said he was willing to harm others who got in the way of his intended political targets, including President Donald Trump and other members of his cabinet.
“He ‘would still go through most everyone here to get to the targets if it were absolutely necessary,'” prosecutors wrote, saying anyone at the dinner was a legitimate target because they “chose” to attend the president’s speech.
Allen’s email to his family, which was automatically sent moments before the attack, addressed a number of grievances against the Trump administration and previous court rulings.
“If, in the defendant’s view, he is the ultimate arbiter of political and legal authority, then he is not bound to follow any law, including the criminal laws of the United States or any dictates of this court,” if he were granted pretrial release, prosecutors wrote.
“Put simply, the defendant poses an uncommonly serious danger to the community if released pending trial,” according to prosecutors.
Allen’s public defender has not filed a motion ahead of Thursday’s detention hearing.
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