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US President Donald Trump on Sunday strongly rejected allegations contained in a manifesto written by the suspect of the White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting, labelling the attacker a "sick person" and distancing himself from claims linking his administration to the Jeffrey Epstein files.
The shooting, which occurred during one of Washington's most high-profile social events, saw a 31-year-old suspect, identified as Cole Tomas Allen, attempt to breach security and open fire before being neutralised by the United States Secret Service. In a sit-down interview with CBS News, the President grew visibly frustrated when excerpts of the suspect's manifesto were read to him. The document reportedly accused administration officials of being "pedophiles, rapists, and traitors." "I read the manifesto. You know, he's a sick person," Trump told the interviewer. "But you should be ashamed of yourself for reading that because I'm not any of those things." Trump went on to explicitly deny the claims, stating, "I'm not a rapist... I'm not a paedophile." He further alleged that the focus should be on his political opponents, claiming he was "totally exonerated" and that "friends on the other side of the plate" were the ones truly involved with Epstein. "You read that crap from some sick person? I got associated with all the stuff that has nothing to do with me. I was totally exonerated. Your friends on the other side of the plate are the ones that were involved with, lets say, Epstein or other things," said Trump. According to US Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, preliminary findings suggest the suspect may have been targeting members of the Trump administration, though authorities are still working to determine a clear motive. Blanche said investigators are examining electronic devices, travel history, and personal connections of the accused. He also defended the response of security agencies during the incident, saying, "Those guys did a good job last night. They did a really good job," after the suspect was quickly apprehended. Meanwhile, in a post on X, White House correspondent Liz Landers noted that the injured officer is "100 per cent" and recovering. The shooting disrupted the annual event attended by senior political leaders, journalists and officials, including Vice President JD Vance and First Lady Melania Trump. Authorities confirmed that all key attendees were unharmed, though one security officer sustained injuries. (ANI)
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