Cole Tomas Allen, the 31-year-old Torrance, California resident arrested for the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting, boasts an impressive resume. He graduated with a mechanical engineering bachelor’s from Caltech in 2017 and a computer science master’s from Cal State Dominguez Hills in 2025. His LinkedIn highlights him as a mechanical engineer, game developer, and teacher.
Diverse Career Path
Allen tutored high schoolers at C2 Education, earning “Teacher of the Month” in 2024 at their Torrance office. He developed games like a Steam molecular chemistry title and a planned space top-down shooter. Earlier roles included mechanical engineer at IJK Controls, Caltech teaching assistant, and 2014 NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Summer Fellow. He built a wheelchair emergency braking prototype and joined Christian fellowships with Nerf games and robotics competitions.
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Shooting at High-Profile Gala
Saturday night, Allen allegedly fired 5-8 shotgun rounds at a Secret Service agent near the Washington Hilton ballroom, injuring one (saved by body armor). The attack led to evacuation of President Trump, Melania, VP JD Vance, and Cabinet members unharmed. Trump called him a “lone-wolf whack job” with multiple weapons. Allen, a guest, faces charges Monday as motive probes deepen.
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