The Federal Bureau of Investigation said on Sunday that it was investigating what appeared to be an attempted assassination of former President Donald J. Trump as he played golf at one of his clubs in Florida.
Officials said Mr. Trump was safe. Just under two months ago, he was wounded in an assassination attempt during a rally in Butler, Pa.
Mr. Trump was golfing at the Trump International Golf Course West Palm Beach when the incident unfolded at around 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, Sheriff Ric Bradshaw of Palm Beach County said at a news briefing.
A Secret Service agent saw an armed man hiding in the shrubbery surrounding the golf course, according to Sheriff Bradshaw. The Secret Service fired at the man, said Rafael Barros, the special agent in charge of the Secret Service’s Miami field office. It was not immediately clear if the suspect had fired any shots.
Mr. Trump was one or two holes away from the Secret Service on the golf course — and perhaps 400 yards away from the armed man, Sheriff Bradshaw said.
An AK-47-style rifle with a scope was found near the property line, along with a video camera, the sheriff added.
“President Trump is safe following gunshots in his vicinity,” Steven Cheung, the Trump campaign’s communications director, said in a statement.
A witness saw the suspect flee from the bushes to a black Nissan. The witness took a photo of the car and shared it with law enforcement officials. The suspect was stopped driving northbound on Interstate 95 after crossing into Martin County.
Law enforcement officials are running a trace to determine who bought the gun and where it was sold, according to two officials with knowledge of the situation.
Mr. Trump was golfing with his friend Steve Witkoff, a New York real estate investor, on the course when the shots were fired at the course, according to three people briefed on the matter. Mr. Trump later returned to Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach estate.
Vice President Kamala Harris said on social media that she had been briefed on the incident. “I am glad he is safe,” she wrote. “Violence has no place in America.”
In a statement, a White House official said President Biden had also been briefed, along with Ms. Harris. “They are relieved to know that he is safe,” the official said.
Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, posted on social media that he had spoken with Mr. Trump and he was “in good spirits.”
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