US grand jury adds assault charge in Trump assassination case

A grand jury in Washington has added a new assault charge to the case against a California man accused of trying to assassinate Donald Trump at a gala in the capital.

The indictment, unsealed on Tuesday, also keeps in place attempted-assassination and firearms counts.

Prosecutors say Cole Tomas Allen, 31, is accused of assaulting a US officer or employee with a deadly weapon.

Court documents say the new charge relates to a Secret Service officer who was shot but not seriously wounded during the incident at the White House Correspondents Dinner on 25 April.

Allen was previously charged last week by criminal complaint and appeared in court in Washington DC.

He has not yet entered a plea and remains in custody.

The case matters because it involves alleged political violence against a former president at a major public event, and it has already prompted a White House security review.

The indictment also raises fresh questions about what happened during the gunfire and whether the officer was hit by crossfire from another officer.

According to court documents, Allen is accused of carrying a semi-automatic handgun, a pump-action shotgun and three knives as he rushed through a security checkpoint one floor above the basement venue at the Washington Hilton hotel.

#DonaldTrump #ColeTomasAllen #USSecretService #WashingtonHilton #WashingtonDC