(Facebook/Melissa Martin)
OAN Staff Sophia Flores and Brooke Mallory
1:13 PM – Monday, February 23, 2026
Authorities have revealed that the 21-year-old man who breached Mar-a-Lago with a shotgun and a gas can, before being neutralized by U.S. Secret Service agents, was driven by a fixation on the Trump administration’s Justice Department release of the Jeffrey Epstein files.
On Sunday, Austin Tucker Martin was gunned down by Secret Service after he entered the north gate of President Donald Trump’s Florida residence while a vehicle was exiting.
“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 explained at a brief press conference. The two agents and the deputy then “fired their weapons to neutralize the threat.”
Martin’s family reported him missing in North Carolina on Saturday.
Prior to his disappearance, authorities noted that Martin had sent a message on February 15th to his co-worker revealing that he was researching the Epstein files further.
“I don’t know if you read up on the Epstein Files, but evil is real and unmistakable,” Martin wrote in a text message, obtained by TMZ. “The best people like you and I can do is use what little influence we have. Tell other people about what you hear about the Epstein files and what the government is doing about it. Raise awareness.”
Trump was in Washington, D.C., at the time of the shooting. The president briefly addressed the incident on Monday during a White House event with Angel families.
“I don’t know how long I’ll be around,” Trump said. “I have a lot of people gunning for me, don’t I?”
BREAKING:
— Megatron (@Megatron_ron) February 23, 2026
🇺🇸 President Trump says he doesn’t know how much time he has left because a lot of people are “gunning for him.” pic.twitter.com/h3Ld6xz7s8
Although many have already labeled the incident as yet another assassination attempt against Trump — the third such case — the FBI, under the leadership of Kash Patel, is still conducting a comprehensive psychological assessment.
Investigators are working to determine whether the act was a misguided “rescue mission,” an instance of “suicide by cop,” or the result of a radical shift in the individual’s political alignment.
FBI is dedicating all necessary resources in the investigation of this morning’s incident at President Trump’s Mar-A-Lago - where an armed individual was shot and killed after unlawfully entering the perimeter. We will continue working closely with @SecretService as well our…
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) February 22, 2026
The first attempt on Trump’s life took place at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024. A 20-year-old gunman, Thomas Matthew Crooks, opened fire on the then-former president and presidential candidate. Fortunately, Trump was struck only in the ear after turning his head at the precise moment the bullet would otherwise have been fatal. Within seconds of the first shot, a Secret Service sniper responded, killing the attacker.
The second assassination attempt against the president occurred on September 15, 2024, while Trump was golfing at his club in West Palm Beach, Florida. Ryan Routh, 60, was spotted by a Secret Service agent hiding along the course’s fence line, approximately 400 yards from the president, with a weapon pointed through shrubbery. After being detected and shot at by agents, Routh fled the scene but was later apprehended by authorities. He was indicted on a total of five federal charges and three state charges, and has since been sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole plus seven years.
Emerging Theories on Motive
The most significant lead revolves around Martin’s “obsession” with the Epstein files, authorities say. Following the release of new documents related to the Epstein case earlier this month, Martin reportedly became fixated on the matter. Some analysts suggest he may have been radicalized by conspiracy theories surrounding the government, or the president himself, “blocking” the truth, despite the fact that Trump himself facilitated the release of the files.
However, others have also questioned whether Martin intended to confront President Trump to “demand justice” or to “protect” him from the “evil,” in Martin’s own words, as portions of the DOJ’s released documents suggest certain public figures were conspiring against Trump.
His family reported him missing just hours before the shooting. He reportedly drove south from North Carolina in a “trance-like” state, purchasing a shotgun en route — a weapon his family claims he was previously “afraid of,” AP News reported.
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