The words of the suspect in the Trump assassination attempt reveal his motives

The man accused of shooting at a White House Correspondents’ Association dinner criticized the policies of US President Donald Trump’s administration and referred to himself as a “friendly federal killer” in writings he sent to family members minutes before the attack, which authorities increasingly believe was politically motivated, according to a letter seen by The Associated Press.

The writings, sent shortly before Saturday night’s shooting at the Washington Hilton, included repeated references to Trump without mentioning his name directly, and also alluded to what the defendant described as “grievances” related to a number of administration actions, including US strikes on drug smuggling boats in the eastern Pacific.

Investigators are treating these writings, along with a series of social media posts and interviews with members of his family, as some of the clearest evidence yet of the suspect’s way of thinking and possible motives behind him.

Authorities also uncovered what one law enforcement official described as a large number of anti-President Trump posts on social media, linked to the suspect, Cole Thomas Allen, a 31-year-old man from California, accused of trying to breach a security checkpoint during a dinner while armed with several weapons and knives.

Allen’s brother contacted police in New London, Connecticut, after receiving the writings, according to a law enforcement official who was not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The New London Police Department said in a statement that it received a call at 10:49 p.m., about two hours after the shooting, from someone who wanted to share information related to the incident, and the police department added that it immediately notified federal law enforcement.

Allen’s sister, who lives in Maryland, told investigators that her brother legally purchased several weapons from a specialty store in California and kept them at their parents’ home in Torrance without their knowledge, according to the official, who added that she described her brother as prone to making radical statements.

The writing examined by The Associated Press was more than 1,000 words long and appeared to be a disjointed, highly personal message that began almost shockingly with the phrase, “Hello, everyone!” Before turning to apologies to family members, co-workers and even strangers he feared would be caught up in the violence.

The note oscillated between confession, grievance and farewell, as Allen thanked people in his life even as he tried to explain the attack.

Elsewhere, Allen veered between political outrage, religious justifications, and responses to imagined critics.

Allen also offered a sarcastic criticism of security at the Washington Hilton, mocking what he described as lax precautions and expressing surprise that he was able to enter the hotel armed without being detected.

Social media posts that appear to match the suspect show him to be a highly educated teacher and amateur video game developer.