U.S. Secret Service agents and a Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office deputy shot and killed a man who entered the secure perimeter at Mar-a-Lago with “what appeared to be a shotgun and a fuel can,” Secret Service announced in a statement on Sunday.
The suspect’s identity has not officially been released yet “pending notification of next of kin,” the statement said, but two law enforcement sources identified the suspect to NBC News as Austin Tucker Martin, a 21-year-old North Carolina man.
A man with that name was reported missing, according to a Facebook post from his mother on Sunday morning. Local police declined to comment to NBC News when asked whether Martin was still considered a missing person.
Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said during a press conference that a deputy and two Secret Service agents went to investigate when the security detail detected that someone entered the Florida club's perimeter.
"They confronted a white male that was carrying a gas can and a shotgun," Bradshaw said. "He was ordered to drop those two pieces of equipment that he had with him, at which time he put down the gas can, raised the shotgun to a shooting position."
"At that point in time, the deputy and the two Secret Service agents fired their weapons and neutralized the threat," he continued. "He is deceased at the scene."
No law enforcement officers were injured, the Secret Service statement said.
President Donald Trump was not at Mar-a-Lago during the incident. He delivered remarks Saturday evening at the White House Governors Dinner in Washington, D.C.
Reached for comment, the White House referred NBC News to the Secret Service and the FBI.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a post to X that Secret Service “acted quickly and decisively to neutralize a crazy person.”
“Federal law enforcement are working 24/7 to keep our country safe and protect all Americans,” she said, going on to criticize Democrats while referencing Secret Service operating within the Department of Homeland Security, which is in a shutdown.
“The incident, including the individual’s background, actions, potential motive, and the use of force, is under investigation by the FBI, the U.S. Secret Service, and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office,” the Secret Service statement said.
The Secret Service agents involved in the shooting will be on administrative leave “pending the outcome of the investigation,” which is routine agency policy, the statement said.
FBI Director Kash Patel said in a post to X that the FBI "is dedicating all necessary resources in the investigation of this morning’s incident at President Trump’s Mar-A-Lago."
Trump has previously faced two assassination attempts amid a rise in violence and threats against political figures in the U.S.
In 2024, Trump was shot at during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. A bullet grazed his ear and one rally attendee was killed. Later that year, a man with a rifle was found hiding in shrubbery at Trump's golf club. The suspect, Ryan Routh, was sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of attempting to assassinate Trump.
Last week, a man was arrested after rushing toward the Capitol with a loaded shotgun.
The incident comes amid heightened concerns over political violence. A U.S. Capitol Police report released in January said that it investigated 14,938 cases last year, a spike from the 9,474 cases it investigated in 2024. Conservative activist Charlie Kirk was shot and killed in September. Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband were shot and killed, and state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife were severely injured in a shooting by the same suspect.
