An ‘Emmy award winning mentalist’ performing a mind-reading trick for Donald Trump when shots were fired at the White House has spoken out.
Oz Pearlman was revealing his trick on a card in between the visible shock of Melania Trump who appears to mouth ‘what’s happening?’ as the shots rang out.
It remains unclear as to what was on the card that shocked Melania and other guests at the top table of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
The mentalist to the stars told Playbook he ‘didn’t see [the shooting] coming’.
‘I thought the room was about to explode, I dropped faster than anyone’, he said.
After the shooting suspect named as Cole Thomas Allen was detained, Pearlman wrote on Instagram: ‘Thank you all for checking on me. I am ok and thank God everyone is alright!
‘Was in the middle of performing for the President and First Lady when I looked up to see a commotion, thought it was a bomb about to go off or shots fired.
‘We hit the deck fast and Secret Service acted decisively and professionally to protect us all.
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‘We laid on the ground, I was a couple feet away from President Trump, eyes locked with one another.
‘It was likely the scariest moment of my life and will never forget it. So happy everyone is ok.’
It came after White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told Fox ahead of Trump’s speech: ‘It will be funny, it will be entertaining.
‘There will be some shots fired tonight at the room, so everyone should tune in – it’s going to be really great.’
Who is Oz Pearlman?
Oz Pearlman has performed tricks for Jennifer Lopez, Stephen Curry and even guessed Joe Rogan’s PIN number live on his podcast.
He came third on America’s Got Talent where he impressed the nation by guessing things like names, numbers, or thoughts almost like a mind reader.
Pearlman insists he’s not a ‘psychic’ but describes himself as an ‘honest con man.’
Before the dinner he spoke to CNN about his hopes that his performance could unite the room.
Asked if he could guess what was going on inside ‘unpredictable’ Donald Trump’s head, he said: ‘I don’t believe any of it’s unpredictable’.
‘In fact, I think that there’s a lot of telegraphing of moves. So when you say unpredictable, I disagree vehemently.
‘I think there’s a playbook that’s been played throughout that’s so easy to spot. And so I don’t believe what you just said whatsoever. I think it’s very easy to spot the patterns.
‘And the more you study him and his actions, his behaviours, his mannerisms, I think are all going to play to my advantage in the room if I get the chance.’
Investigators into the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting found anti-Trump and anti-Christian posts on the suspect’s social media accounts.
A senior official told CBS that the suspect sent some of his writings to family members before the attempted attack, and one of them alerted the police.
The suspect has been identified as Cole Thomas Allen, 31, from Torrance, California. He was armed with a shotgun, a handgun and multiple knives when he charged at a security checkpoint by the ballroom.
The writings, some of which were found in the hotel room where he was staying – the same hotel where the dinner was – didn’t mention the correspondent’s dinner.
One family member who was interviewed by officials said Allen would often reference planning to ‘do something’ to fix the issues in today’s world.
How did the attack happen?
Last night, gunshots rang out at the hotel where the formal White House Correspondents’ Dinner was taking place on Saturday evening, with one Secret Service agent hit but ‘in good spirits’, the President said.
According to reporters in the room, commotion was heard towards the back of the ballroom just after 8.30pm on Saturday evening, while attendees were being served the first course of their meal.
The President, the First Lady, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio had taken their seats minutes before.
Dramatic footage from the scene showed personnel rushing on stage to usher away Trump, his wife, Melania, and several other top administration officials.
Multiple agents in full protective gear then replace them, pointing their guns across the room and over the heads of hundreds of high-profile guests.
Trump later posted pictures of the suspect in the shooting lying face down on the carpeted floor, topless.