The Secret Service is investigating a new incident at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club
The ritzy Mar-a-Lago club — one-time Jeffrey Epstein hangout, target of eccentric intruders, nexus of an ongoing counterintelligence investigation — had another unusual occurrence Monday evening.
Palm Beach police say they are conducting an “open and active criminal investigation” at the club, also President Donald Trump’s South Florida home, following an unspecified incident.
The Secret Service is leading the investigation and no arrest has been made, according to the Palm Beach Police Department.
“During an encounter with local law enforcement, an individual made non-threatening statements about a person under Secret Service protection,” a law enforcement official with knowledge of the incident told the Miami Herald. “As part of standard practice, Palm Beach police contacted the local Secret Service office.”
The Secret Service protects the president and members of his family. The president had left for Washington, D.C., more than 24 hours earlier.
Michael Ogrodnick, a Palm Beach police spokesman, declined to comment Tuesday, citing the investigation. But the department did provide a nearly completely redacted incident report showing officers were called around 7 p.m. to “assist” another law enforcement agency.
“As a matter of practice, the Secret Service does not confirm or comment on the absence or existence of our criminal investigations,” according to a statement from a Secret Service spokesperson.
The Palm Beach police report also mentions the involvement of the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. A spokeswoman for PBSO didn’t immediately provide information.
While law enforcement officials would not discuss the nature of the investigation, Mar-a-Lago security has been breached repeatedly since Trump became president. The private club and mansion has witnessed several high-profile trespassing incidents.
The club has been on heightened alert since Trump ordered a military strike that killed an influential Iranian general last week. Trump gave the order from the club. On Sunday, an adviser to Iran’s president, Hassan Rouhani, tweeted a Forbes list of Trump’s properties, including Mar-a-Lago, then followed up by saying that “We have ZERO problems with the American people ... Our sole problem is Trump. In the event of war, it is he who will bear full responsibility.”
Instagram users have been tagging Mar-a-Lago on a map of South Florida with the words “Dear Iran, He’s on the golf course.” The post has been tagged to the club at least 12 times since the attack. (Mar-a-Lago does not have a golf course, although Trump does frequently play at his nearby Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach.)
Trump left Mar-a-Lago Sunday after spending his winter holiday in South Florida. The Trump Organization has long run the mansion as a private club for members. The president also declared it his legal residence late last year. Secret Service is in charge of security when the president is staying at the club. Members of his immediate family also have Secret Service details that accompany them there. Otherwise, security is provided by private contractors.
In March, a Chinese woman was arrested after trespassing at Mar-a-Lago. She was subsequently investigated by federal authorities as a potential foreign agent. The woman, Yujing Zhang, was found guilty of entering a restricted federal area and making false statements but was not charged with any espionage-related activities.
A second Chinese woman, Lu Jing, was arrested in December after allegedly sneaking onto the property and taking pictures. The Secret Service did not respond to questions about whether it had taken over that investigation as well. Trump was not there at the time.
The Daily Mail reported that in response to the breaches the Secret Service has added two new security checkpoints to screen members and guests entering the club during presidential visits.
A receptionist who answered the phone at Mar-a-Lago declined to comment Tuesday. The White House and Trump Organization did not respond to requests for comment.
Mar-a-Lago member Fred Rustmann said Tuesday he had not heard of anything unusual happening at the club. Rustmann said members are not typically notified when club security is compromised.
Claude Taylor, an anti-Trump activist, happened to be on a boat on the Intracoastal Waterway behind Mar-a-Lago on Monday evening around the time of the incident. Taylor had organized a three-boat flotilla to protest the president. One vessel carried a giant balloon in the shape of a rat outfitted with Trump’s signature hairdo and red tie. Another had a billboard that exclaimed: “Remove Trump.” (The waterway is an open-access public space.)
Two men wearing dark suits were monitoring his activities from Mar-a-Lago’s grounds Monday evening.
Suddenly, one of the men started running back toward the club. The other followed in a golf cart. They did not come back.
“I definitely think it was related,” Taylor said.
This story was originally published January 7, 2020 at 1:26 PM.
