A 21-year-old man armed with a shotgun was killed by law enforcement around 1:30am local time Sunday after breaching the inner perimeter of Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump’s Florida residence and private club. Authorities identified the suspect as Austin Tucker Martin of Cameron, North Carolina.
According to Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi, Martin entered the property through the North Gate as another vehicle was exiting. Two Secret Service agents and a Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputy confronted the suspect, who was armed with a shotgun and carrying a gas can. Officers ordered him to drop the items.
Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw told reporters Martin put down the gas can but raised the shotgun into a firing position. All three officers opened fire killing Martin at the scene. It is unclear if Martin’s shotgun was loaded.
President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were in Washington, D.C., at the time of the incident, and no law enforcement personnel were injured.
The Investigation
The FBI now leading the investigation with assistance from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. At a press conference yesterday, FBI Special Agent Brett Skiles asked local residents to check exterior cameras on their properties for “anything that looks suspicious or out of place.” Anyone with any unusual footage was encouraged to contact 1-800-CALL-FBI or the West Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office.
Investigators believe Martin purchased the shotgun somewhere along his drive from North Carolina. Martin’s mother reported her son missing on Saturday, according to The New York Post. Authorities are working to determine a motive.
Martin’s social media accounts show he was an artist who frequently sketched scenes of golf courses. He reportedly worked at the Pine Needles Lodge and Golf Club. TMZ reported Martin had “grown increasingly obsessed with the Epstein files in recent weeks.”
According to the outlet, which displayed a screenshot, Martin recently texted a friend, “I don’t know if you read up on the Epstein Files, but evil is real and unmistakable.” TMZ also reported Martin had been a Trump supporter as recently as last year.
The Reaction
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt reacted to the incident on X yesterday. “In the middle of the night, while most Americans were asleep, the United States Secret Service acted quickly and decisively to neutralize a crazy person armed with a gun and a gas canister who intruded President Trump’s home,” she wrote. “Federal law enforcement are working 24-7 to keep our country safe and protect all Americans.”
RealClearPolitics correspondent Susan Crabtree, who covers the Secret Service, reported on X that the incident is, “unfortunately, not surprising.” Crabtree pointed to staffing shortages and morale issues, including a recent suicide attempt by an agent on President Trump’s detail as agents are “stretched way too thin, working six days per week and hitting maximum overtime.”
This incident came less than a week after another armed gunman was arrested while charging toward the U.S. Capitol with a shotgun.
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