Donald Trump‘s campaign said the Republican presidential candidate was safe after gunshots were first reported in his vicinity Sunday afternoon in Florida, his campaign and the Secret Service said on Sunday.
The U.S. Secret Service said it was investigating and that the incident occurred shortly before 2 p.m. “The former president is safe,” according to the Secret Service.
Hours later, the FBI said Trump was the target of “what appears to be an attempted assassination” at his golf club in West Palm Beach, the Associated Press reported. The attempt come just nine weeks after Trump was shot during an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania, when a bullet grazed his ear.
Related Stories
U.S. Secret Service agents posted a few holes up from where Trump was playing noticed the muzzle of an AK-style rifle sticking through the shrubbery that lines the course, roughly 400 yards away.
An agent fired and the gunman dropped the rifle and fled in an SUV, leaving the firearm behind along with two backpacks, a scope used for aiming and a GoPro camera, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said. The man was later taken into custody in a neighboring county.
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.
No injuries were reported, according to a spokesperson for the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office in Florida.
In an email to supporters after the incident, Trump said: “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 wrote: “Nothing will slow me down. I will NEVER SURRENDER!”
He returned to Mar-a-Lago club, his private club in Palm Beach where he lives, the AP reported.
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 added they were “relieved” to know Trump is safe.
Harris, in a statement, also said “violence has no place in America.”
Trump’s running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, said in a post online: “I’m glad President Trump is safe. I spoke to him before the news was public and he was, amazingly, in good spirits.”
Trump often spends the morning playing golf, before having lunch at the Trump International Golf Club West Palm Beach, one of three he owns in the state.
Trump has had a stepped-up security footprint since the assassination attempt in July. When he has been at Trump Tower in New York, a lineup of dump trucks have parked in a wall outside the building. And at outdoor rallies, he now speaks from behind an enclosure of bulletproof glass.
Sept. 15, 3:50 p.m. Updated with FBI investigation.
THR Newsletters
Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day