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US Secret Service agents kill man trying to trespass Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort
The man was carrying what appeared to be a shotgun and a fuel can, and he was observed at the resort's north gate around 1.30am EST (10.30am UAE time)
- PUBLISHED: Sun 22 Feb 2026, 6:20 PM UPDATED: Sun 22 Feb 2026, 7:40 PM
- By:
- Reuters
U.S. Secret Service and local police shot and killed a man armed with a shotgun early on Sunday after he breached a secure perimeter at President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, law enforcement officials said.
Trump is currently in Washington.
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The man, who appeared to be in his 20s, was carrying what appeared to be a shotgun and a fuel can, the agency said, adding that he was observed at the resort's north gate around 1.30am EST (10.30am UAE time).
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Two US Secret Service agents and a Palm Beach County Sheriff's deputy confronted the man and ordered him to drop the two items, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said at a press conference on Sunday morning.
The man put down the gas canister and raised the shotgun "to a shooting position," prompting law enforcement to open fire, Bradshaw said.
The man was declared dead at the scene. No law enforcement officers were injured.
Bradshaw, the Palm Beach sheriff, identified the shooter as 21-year-old Austin Tucker Martin, a resident of a small town in North Carolina about 700 miles (1127 kilometers) north of Mar-a-Lago, according to the Washington Post, as reported by AFP.
Martin was an illustrator of landscapes and golf courses, and had an older sister who died three years ago at the age of 21, though obituaries did not provide a cause of death, the Miami Herald reported, according to AFP.
Law enforcement officials did not reveal any information about the motive for the incident. The FBI has taken over the investigation and is collecting evidence from the scene, officials said.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The United States is facing a spike in political violence.
In 2024, Trump faced two assassination attempts, including one at his golf course in West Palm Beach. Melissa Hortman, a Democratic state lawmaker in Minnesota, was shot and killed in June 2025 along with her husband. Months later, conservative activist Charlie Kirk was also assassinated.
