Man Killed at Mar-a-Lago Obsessed With Epstein Case

 

The 21-year-old man who was gunned down after allegedly breaching the perimeter at President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate was an aspiring artist who had become increasingly focused on the Jeffrey Epstein case, according to multiple reports.

Austin Tucker Martin of Cameron, North Carolina, was confronted by U.S. Secret Service agents and Palm Beach County sheriff's deputies near the north gate of the Mar-a-Lago complex early Sunday. Authorities say he was carrying what appeared to be a shotgun and a fuel canister.

Officers ordered Martin to drop the items. He reportedly put down the canister but raised the shotgun into what law enforcement described as a "shooting position," and he was shot and killed.

Investigators believe Martin drove from North Carolina to Florida on Saturday, based on social media posts from family members and information released by the sheriff's office in his home county.

According to TMZ, Martin sent a text message to a co-worker on Feb. 15 referencing the Epstein files. The message read, "I don't know if you read up on the Epstein Files, but evil is real and unmistakable."

He continued: "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."

Following the latest release of Justice Department documents related to Epstein, Martin reportedly expressed the belief that a government cover-up was underway and that people were "getting away with it."

Martin graduated from Union Pines High School in Cameron in 2023, according to a social media post from his mother. State voting records list him as a registered voter unaffiliated with any political party.

His cousin Braeden Fields told The Associated Press that Martin came from a family of "big Trump supporters."

Fields also said Martin worked at a local golf course and donated part of his paycheck to charity.

Last June, Martin registered a business called Fresh Sky Illustrations, The New York Times reported. 

The company's website describes it as an artwork business focused on "bringing to life the hopeful feeling of being on a golf course by illustrating golf course scenes and providing framed copies of handmade works in various golf course gift shops." It also offered personal commissions.

Fields described his cousin as "very quiet" and said he had little experience with firearms.

"He doesn't even know how to use a gun. He's never used a gun," Fields told Durham's WTVD. "I'm a big hunter, and I've had him around guns all the time, and he's never used one. He won't, he don't like them. He don't like it; it hurts his ears."