Martin May Have Been Influenced by the Department of Justice’s Release of Files Related to Jeffrey Epstein

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New reports indicate that Austin Tucker Martin, the 21-year-old shot and killed after breaching the secure perimeter of Mar-a-Lago, was reportedly frustrated and increasingly focused on the release and handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files before the incident. The FBI continues to piece together a motive as the case unfolds. 

Alleged Motive: Anger Over Epstein Files Comes Into Focus

The armed man who was shot and killed by Secret Service agents after entering the secured perimeter of President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on Sunday morning (February 23, 2026) was angry about the Jeffrey Epstein files, according to co-workers and a text message obtained during investigations.

The man, identified as 21-year-old Austin Tucker Martin of North Carolina, sent a message to a co-worker on February 15, where he said, "Evil is real and unmistakable” while referring to the files.

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He also wrote: ”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," according to the reports.

Inside the Mar-a-Lago Security Breach and Law Enforcement Response

Martin was confronted by two Secret Service agents and a Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputy near the north gate of the property, holding what officials described as a shotgun and a gas canister.

Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said Martin was ordered to drop the items. He put down the gas canister but “raised the shotgun to a shooting position,” Bradshaw said at a brief press conference.

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The two agents and the deputy “fired their weapons to neutralize the threat.”

Rafael Barros, the special agent in charge of the Secret Service’s Miami field office, said no law enforcement officers were injured in the incident. 

Broader Security Implications

The country has continued to grapple with violence in an increasingly polarizing political landscape, especially following the assassinations of Minnesota Democrat State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband and of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

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Investigators have not identified a motive, but Trump has faced multiple threats to his life, including two assassination attempts during the 2024 presidential campaign. 

Thomas Crooks, 20, shot Trump during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July 2024, where he clipped Trump's ear before a Secret Service counter sniper fatally shot him, and Ryan Wesley Routh was arrested after taking up a position with a rifle near Trump's golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida, as he was playing in September 2024.

Closing Note

Many prominent figures were named in the huge trove of documents released by the Justice Department in connection with its investigations of Epstein. All have denied having anything to do with his abuse of girls and young women, and inclusion in the files does not imply wrongdoing. Epstein died by suicide in a jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges.

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