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The suspect, who was carrying a shotgun, handgun and knives, according to DC Metropolitan police, apparently ran past security agents at a checkpoint inside the Washington Hilton hotel, a security video showed.

Shots were fired and chaos erupted as the suspect was tackled on the floor above the hotel’s ballroom, where the event was being held. A Secret Service agent wearing a bulletproof vest was shot. He was hospitalized and later reported in good condition. No one else was injured.

Trump, first lady Melania Trump, Vice President JD Vance and other officials were rushed to safety after shots were heard shortly after the dinner began.

The arrested suspect, Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, is scheduled to make his first appearance in Washington federal court on Monday.

Timeline: How the shooting unfolded

(All times are Eastern and approximate)

2 p.m.: The hotel is closed to the public in preparation of the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner.

8 p.m.: The event begins. More than 3,000 people are in the ballroom.

8:16 p.m.: Trump and the first lady enter the ballroom and are seated with other officials.

8:36 p.m.: An armed suspect charges a Secret Service checkpoint in a lobby outside the hotel ballroom. Closed-circuit TV footage appears to show him running past security officers, who draw their weapons. Shots are fired. Secret Service agents tackle and apprehend the suspect.

Trump, the first lady and other officials are rushed from the ballroom to safety. Dinner guests dive under tables.

Jeffery Carroll, the interim Metropolitan police chief, later says the suspect was armed with a shotgun, a handgun and multiple knives.

8:55 p.m.: Hotel staffers tell people in the ballroom to leave.

Sometime before 9 p.m.: Weijia Jiang of CBS News, president of the White House Correspondents’ Association, tells the remaining crowd. “Our program is going to resume momentarily.� 

9:17 p.m.: On Truth Social, Trump posts: "Quite an evening in D.C. Secret Service and Law Enforcement did a fantastic job. They acted quickly and bravely. The shooter has been apprehended, and I have recommended that we “LET THE SHOW GO ON� but, will entirely be guided by Law Enforcement. They will make a decision shortly. Regardless of that decision, the evening will be much different than planned, and we’ll just, plain, have to do it again."

9:24 p.m.: In a post on X, Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi says the shots were fired near the main magnetometer screening area at the dinner. Magnetometers are used as metal detectors.

9:36 p.m.: On Truth Social, Trump posts: "Law Enforcement has requested that we leave the premises, consistent with protocol, which we will do, immediately. I will be giving a press conference in 30 minutes from the White House Press Briefing Room. The First Lady, plus the Vice President, and all Cabinet members, are in perfect condition. We will be speaking to you in a half an hour. I have spoken with all the representatives in charge of the event, and we will be rescheduling within 30 days."

9:45 p.m.: Trump leaves the hotel.

10 p.m.: Trump arrives at White House.

10:29 p.m.: On Truth Social, Trump posts CCTV video and a photo of the suspect on the hotel floor.

10:30 p.m.: On Truth Social, Trump posts a second photo of the suspect on the floor.

10:31 p.m.: Trump appears in the White House briefing room to talk about the incident and says how traumatic it was.

How will the shooting suspect be charged?

The suspect will be arraigned April 27 in federal district court on charges of using a firearm during a crime of violence and assault on a federal officer using a dangerous weapon, said Jeanine Pirro, U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia.

How was the suspect able to get inside the hotel?

Carroll said investigators believe the suspect was a guest at the hotel. This allowed him to enter the hotel during the dinner. It's not yet clear when the suspect checked in.

Once inside the hotel, dinner guests had their tickets checked at multiple points to gain access to the ballroom.

• A paper invitation was presented to event staff.
• Guests walked through a magnetometer, a metal-detecting device, operated by the Secret Service and Transportation Security Administration.
• Event staff inspected bags carried by guests.

No one else was permitted to enter the area after Trump was seated at the head table. Security video released by Trump appears to show the suspect running past officers who are taking down metal detectors.

The Secret Service created a perimeter for the head table and personal safety zone for Trump at the table itself, U.S. News said. Armed Secret Service agents were posted close by.