North Carolina Man Shot and Killed After Trying to Enter Mar-a-Lago
PALM BEACH, Florida — A North Carolina man was shot and killed by law enforcement Sunday morning after breaking into the secure grounds of President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate.
Around 1:30 a.m., security teams spotted the man, identified as Austin T. Martin, inside the inner perimeter near the north gate. When a deputy and two Secret Service agents confronted him, they found him carrying a gun and a gas can.
“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,” Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said.
That’s when the agents and the deputy fired their weapons, killing Martin.
Deputies say Martin’s family reported missing by his family just one day earlier. They are now retracing his drive from North Carolina to see if he bought the shotgun along the way.
The Secret Service confirmed that President Trump was in Washington at the time and no one under their protection was at the estate during the break-in. No officers were hurt, and the FBI is investigating.
