The incident occurred early Sunday when 21-year-old Austin Tucker Martin breached Mar-a-Lago’s security with a shotgun and fuel can, prompting the Secret Service to respond.
Photo : AP
A day after a gun-wielding intruder was shot dead while breaching the security perimeter of his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, US President Donald Trump said that he was unsure “how long I’ll be around.” The remarks marked his first public response to the security scare at his private club in Palm Beach, where US Secret Service agents opened fire on an armed man early Sunday. Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were at the White House when the incident unfolded.
“I don’t know how long I’ll be around,” Trump said at a White House event with angel families on Monday. “I have a lot of people gunning for me, don’t I?”
Four of America’s 45 presidents have been assassinated, and several others, both sitting presidents and candidates, have faced attempts on their lives. Trump himself has survived two assassination attempts in the run-up to being the president.
On July 13, 2024, Donald Trump, the then-presumptive nominee of the Republican Party, survived an assassination attempt while speaking at an open-air campaign rally near Butler, Pennsylvania. Several shots were fired, and one bullet grazed past the upper part of his right ear. He was rushed out of the campaign rally by Secret Service agents.
On September 15, 2024, Trump survived a second assassination attempt while golfing at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida.
What happened at Mar-a-Lago over the weekend?
An armed man was shot and killed early Sunday after breaching the secure perimeter of Mar-a-Lago, President Trump’s private club and residence in Palm Beach, Florida, according to the United States Secret Service. The authorities said the episode unfolded at about 1:30 am near the north gate of the property. In a statement, the Secret Service said the man was “observed by the north gate of the Mar-a-Lago property carrying what appeared to be a shotgun and a fuel can.”
The accused was identified as 21-year-old North Carolina resident Austin Tucker Martin. A box for the shotgun was later discovered inside Martin’s vehicle, and authorities believe he purchased the weapon while travelling south.
