FBI investigates shooting near Trump as apparent assassination attempt; Trump is safe • Arizona Mirror

The FBI is taking the lead in the investigation, said Jeffrey Veltri, special agent in charge of the FBI's Miami field office, during a Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office press conference late this afternoon.

Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw told reporters that a secret agent and Trump saw a rifle emerge from the bushes next to the golf course.

“The Secret Service agent who took the course did a fantastic job,” he said. “They have an agent who jumps a hole ahead of where the president was. He could see the gun barrel sticking out of the fence and immediately attack him, and the man ran away.”

The suspect in the bushes was carrying an AK-47 rifle with a scope, two backpacks filled with ceramic tiles and a GoPro camera, Bradshaw said.

Bradshaw said a witness saw the suspect emerge from the bushes and speed away in a black Nissan. The witness took a photo of the license plate and local police officers were able to stop the vehicle in Martin County, which borders Palm Beach County.

“They spotted the vehicle, stopped it and arrested the man,” Bradshaw said.

After the driver was arrested, the witness was able to identify him as “the person he saw running out of the bushes and jumping into the car,” according to Bradshaw.

Bradshaw said the suspect was about 300 to 500 feet away from Trump.

“With a rifle and a scope like this, that’s not a great distance,” he said.

Bradshaw did not provide any further information about the suspect's identity.

US Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said on social media before the press conference that there had been a “protective incident” involving Trump and that the Secret Service was investigating the incident along with the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office. He also confirmed that Trump was safe.

The private golf club is located about 4 miles from Trump's main residence in Mar-a-Lago.

Reactions from Vance, Harris and Biden

Republican vice presidential candidate and Senator JD Vance of Ohio wrote on social media that he had spoken to Trump, who was in “good spirits.”

“We still don't know much, but I'm going to give my children a special hug tonight and say a prayer of thanks,” Vance wrote.

Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate, said on social media that she had been informed and was glad that Trump was safe.

“Violence has no place in America,” she said.

The White House said President Joe Biden had also been briefed.

“They are relieved to know he is safe,” the White House said of Biden and Harris. “They will be regularly updated by their team.”

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, said in a statement that he “praised the Secret Service for its swift response to ensure the safety of former President Trump.”

“There is no place for political violence of any kind in this country,” he said. “The perpetrator must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

The incident followed an assassination attempt on Trump on July 13 during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Congress set up a bipartisan task force to investigate the assassination attempt. The task force's chairman, Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly of Pennsylvania, and its top Democrat, U.S. Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado, released a joint statement asking the Secret Service for a briefing on the West Palm Beach shooting “and the response of law enforcement.”

“We are grateful that the former president was not harmed, but remain deeply concerned about political violence and condemn it in all its forms,” ​​they wrote. “The Task Force will keep us updated as we learn more.”

Republican U.S. Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio, who is on the task force investigating the incident, said on social media: “Given the ongoing threats against Trump, it is critical that we remain committed to our work on the Task Force Investigating the Attempted Assassination of President Trump.”