Secret service agents respond during the White House Correspondents Dinner in Washington D.C., April 25. AP-Yonhap
WASHINGTON — U.S. Secret Service agents bundled Donald Trump from the stage as shots rang out Saturday evening at a media gala, in what the president later described as an attack by a "would-be assassin."
Armed guards opened fire at the gunman who charged through a security checkpoint just outside the ballroom of the hotel where Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, senior government officials and hundreds of other black-tie guests had gathered.
People dived under tables in chaotic scenes as Secret Service teams swarmed into the glitzy White House Correspondents' Association dinner held annually at the Washington Hilton in the US capital.
"A man charged a security checkpoint armed with multiple weapons, and he was taken down by some very brave members of the Secret Service," Trump told a press conference at the White House shortly after the incident.
"They seem to think he was a lone wolf, and I feel that too," he said, after posting video of the gunman sprinting past security as guards drew their weapons. The man was detained at the scene.
Trump said one officer was shot at close range but appeared to not be critically injured. He added that the venue was "not a particularly secure" facility as questions swirled about the president's safety.
Trump said at the hastily arranged news conference that he first thought the noise was a tray being dropped before he realized it was gunfire. He said he planned to re-schedule the media gala within a month despite the security scare.
City officials said the suspect, who will be arraigned in court on Monday on firearm and assault charges, appeared to have been a guest at the hotel. He was armed with a shotgun, handgun and knives.
"Law enforcement exchanged gunfire with the individual," Washington police chief Jeffery Carroll told reporters. "A US Secret Service uniformed division officer was struck in his vest. He was transported to a local hospital for treatment. He appears to be in good spirits."
Source: Korea Times News
