Feb. 23, 2026 — Palm Beach, Fla. U.S. Secret Service agents and a Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputy fatally shot 21-year-old Austin Tucker Martin from Cameron, North Carolina, after he breached the secure north perimeter of President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort around 1:30 a.m. Sunday. Martin carried a shotgun and a gas can, ignored commands to stop, and raised his weapon at the officers, prompting them to fire, authorities said.
Trump was not present at the property. Martin drove from North Carolina Saturday afternoon, acquiring the shotgun en route, and slipped through the north employee gate as another vehicle exited, according to a Secret Service spokesman. He dropped the gas can inside the perimeter before raising the shotgun at two agents and the deputy, who “neutralized the threat,” Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said via NBC Miami.
Martin’s family reported him missing around 1:40 a.m. Sunday to Moore County authorities after receiving a text from him saying “I’m okay, I love you,” per the NewsNation report. A relative alerted a deputy at a local business just before the incident.
Cousin Braeden Fields expressed disbelief:
“He’s a good kid. I wouldn’t believe he would do something like this. It’s mind-blowing,” Fields told NBC Miami. “He wouldn’t even hurt an ant. He doesn’t even know how to use a gun.”
Fields described Martin as quiet and apolitical, from a family of Trump supporters:
“We are big Trump supporters, all of us,” he said, adding Martin rarely discussed politics and avoided guns during family hunting trips (Fox News).
Martin, a recent high school graduate, ran Fresh Sky Illustrations, selling golf course artwork. Relatives noted his recent fixation on Jeffrey Epstein files following their release. He texted a co-worker in February:
“I don’t know if you read up on the Epstein Files, but evil is real and unmistakable … Tell other people about what you hear about the Epstein files and what the government is doing about it. Raise awareness,” per TMZ.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt praised the response on X:
“In the middle of the night while most Americans were asleep, the United States Secret Service acted quickly and decisively to neutralize a crazy person … who intruded President Trump’s home.”
The FBI is investigating, with no prior criminal history noted for Martin in North Carolina.
Video: CBS clip detailing the identification and response (Times of India/YouTube). Watch full here.
