Trump Safe as FBI Investigates Apparent 2nd Assassination Attempt

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Dave Aronberg, state attorney for Florida’s Palm Beach County, says that his prosecutors are working on charging the would-be assassin of former President Donald Trump with state-level crimes, but said that federal charges are also possible.

Currently, Aronberg said, prosecutors in his office are working on crafting an application for warrants and pretrial detention of the suspect, who hasn’t yet been officially identified by authorities.

“Our filing of the warrant and charges at the state level does not preclude the federal charges that could be coming,” Aronberg said. “But in the meantime, it looks like the warrants and a pretrial detention motion will happen first.”

At around 1:30 p.m. ET, while former President Donald Trump was golfing at the Trump International Golf Course at West Palm Beach, the Secret Service opened fire at a man hidden in bushes surrounding the golf course who had a rifle pointed toward the course, authorities say.

Trump and his campaign have confirmed he is unharmed. “I am safe and well!” Trump wrote in all caps in a social media post after the incident.

Palm Beach County Sheriff PIO Teri Barber holds a photograph of the rifle and other items found near where a suspect was discovered during a press conference regarding an apparent assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump on Sept. 15, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Florida. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images) — Palm Beach County Sheriff PIO Teri Barber holds a photograph of the rifle and other items found near where a suspect was discovered during a press conference regarding an apparent assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump on Sept. 15, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Florida. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle condemned the news of a suspected second attempt on former President Donald Trump’s life on Sunday, calling for peace and expressing opposition to political violence.

In a campaign email after the incident, many details of which remain unknown, Trump confirmed he was safe.

“There were gunshots in my vicinity, but before rumors start spiraling out of control, I wanted you to hear this first: I am safe and well! Nothing will slow me down. I will never surrender! I will always love you for supporting me. Unity. Peace. Make America Great Again. May God bless you, Donald Trump,” the email read, some in all caps.

FBI Says Trump Was Target of Apparent 2nd Assassination Attempt

The FBI said on Sunday that former President Donald Trump was targeted in a suspected second assassination attempt in as many months after his campaign confirmed that shots were reported in his vicinity.

“The FBI has responded to West Palm Beach Florida and is investigating what appears to be an attempted assassination of former President Trump,” the FBI told The Epoch Times in a statement.

A representative of U.S. Secret Service told a news conference Sunday that a Secret Service personnel opened fire on a suspected gunman “located near the property line,” adding it’s under investigation, while the Palm Beach sheriff said that officials recovered an AK-47-style rifle with a scope, two backpacks that had “ceramic tile” inside, and a GoPro camera.

A Secret Service agent that is stationed near of Trump while he was golfing “was able to spot this rifle barrel” and “immediately [engaged] that individual, at which time the individual took off,” Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw told the news conference.

The Martin County Sheriff’s Office in Florida said it has taken a suspect into custody that is believed to be connected to reports of shots fired in the vicinity of Trump. The identity of the individual has not been disclosed.

The sheriff’s office and Martin County Sheriff William Snyder confirmed that a section of Interstate 95 was shut down, confirming to reporters that a suspect in connection to the Trump International Golf Course incident was detained. The individual, who was not identified, “was relatively calm” during the arrest, he said.

He added that law enforcement also discovered an AK-47 rifle, describing it as a “very serious incident.”

Federal law enforcement officials are on the scene, Snyder said.

A portion of Interstate 96 near State Route 74 was shut down, the sheriff’s office said in a Facebook post. “We will update this information as it becomes available,” the post said.

The former president’s campaign said in a statement earlier Sunday that he is safe, which was later echoed by the U.S. Secret Service. No injures were reported, law enforcement officials said.

The U.S. Secret Service said it was investigating and that the incident occurred shortly before 2 p.m. “The former president is safe,” it said.

Trump had returned to Florida this weekend from a West Coast swing that included a Friday night rally in Las Vegas and a Utah fundraiser. As of press time, he has not issued a statement on the matter on his social media website, Truth Social.

An email sent out by Trump said that he is “safe and well” after the reports of shots being fired.

“There were gunshots in my vicinity, but before rumors start spiraling out of control, I wanted you to hear this first: I AM SAFE AND WELL!” he said. “Nothing will slow me down. I will NEVER SURRENDER! I will always love you for supporting me.”

The White House said President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, had both been briefed and would be kept updated on the investigation. The White House said they were “relieved to know Trump is safe.”

The incident occurred roughly two months after an assassination attempt on Trump’s life at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.

By Jack Phillips