The man who showed up at Mar-a-Lago with a shotgun and a gas can before being killed by Secret Service agents wasn’t some unhinged leftist—he was a MAGA supporter obsessed with the idea that the Trump administration was covering up the Epstein files.
BREAKING: Austin Tucker, Martin, the man who was killed trying to enter Mar-a-Lago with a shotgun and gas can was a white Christian Trump supporter.
— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) February 23, 2026
He wasn’t trans, he wasn’t democrat, he wasn’t an immigrant nor a minority.
Austin was outspoken about his Christian faith and… pic.twitter.com/Oj1d57PQrh
But that didn’t stop White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt from blaming Democrats anyway.
Austin Tucker Martin, 21, was shot and killed around 1:30 a.m. Sunday outside Trump’s Florida residence. The president wasn’t home—he was in D.C. at the time.
Leavitt praised the Secret Service for acting “quickly and decisively to neutralize a crazy person,” then pivoted to taking a shot at Democrats, adding: “It’s shameful and reckless that Democrats have chosen to shut down their Department.”
The problem: Martin came from a family of die-hard Trump supporters, according to his own cousin.
“We are big Trump supporters, all of us. Everybody,” Braeden Fields, 19, told The Sun. He called his cousin’s actions “mind-blowing.”
Martin, who was reported missing from Cameron, North Carolina, the day before the shooting, had grown fixated on what he believed was a government cover-up of the Epstein files. He texted a co-worker at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club on Feb. 15: “I don’t know if you read up on the Epstein Files, but evil is real and unmistakable.”
He urged his colleague to “raise awareness” about “what the government is doing about it.”
Co-workers told TMZ that Martin was “deeply disturbed” by the files and repeatedly talked about powerful people “getting away with it.” He was reportedly outspoken about his Christian faith and had said as recently as late last year that he viewed Trump as a strong leader.
Three of Martin’s high school friends confirmed to The New York Times that he held conservative viewpoints. “He is from a very pro-Trump family and fit into that narrative,” said Clarice Bonillo, who served as his JROTC officer.
Martin was also reportedly frustrated about the economy and still lived with his parents because, as those close to him explained, he believed young people need two jobs or roommates just to afford moving out.
The shooting comes a month after the Department of Justice released over 3 million Epstein-related files—leaving an estimated 3 million more still locked in FBI vaults. Trump has insisted the released documents exonerate him.
“I’m the expert in a way because I’ve been totally exonerated,” Trump claimed after the arrest of Prince Andrew. “It’s very nice. So I can actually speak about it very nicely.”