Two employees of the former president donald trump‘s Mar-a-Lago Resort strewn boxes of papers around the property a day earlier FBI Multiple media outlets reported on Thursday that agents and a federal prosecutor were visiting to recover classified documents.
The Washington Post reported first that a maintenance worker at the Florida club told federal prosecutors he saw Trump’s valet Walt Nauta moving the boxes to a storage area on June 2, 2022, before offering his help, not knowing what the boxes contained. On the same day, a lawyer for Trump contacted the Justice Department and said Justice Department officials could come to Mar-a-Lago to pick up classified files, people familiar with the investigation told the newspaper.
Jay Bratt, a top Justice Department prosecutor, traveled to Mar-a-Lago on June 3 and presented him with a stack of confidential files and a signed letter confirming that a search had been conducted for other such material, but had been was not the case was found The New York Times added. But two months later, on August 8, the FBI issued a search warrant for the property, fearing sensitive documents were on the Trump property, and seized more than 100 other classified files in a storage area and in Trump’s office.
The revelation adds new context to Trump’s conduct related to the classified files and potentially expands the timeline for possible crime and disability. The Post added that prosecutors also gathered evidence that Trump’s team conducted a “dress rehearsal” for moving files he wanted to keep.
The latest reports come at a crucial time in the investigation.
The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that Jack Smith is a special adviser to the Justice Department The collection of testimonies and evidence is almost complete after meetings with the former president’s top aides, as well as maids and maintenance staff at the Florida property that serves as Trump’s residence and doubles as a private club. And the Post reported last month that federal investigators were gathering evidence Trump may have searched boxes of documents upon receipt of a summons to return them.
Trump’s attorneys also wrote to Attorney General Merrick Garland this week ask for a meeting to discuss the investigation, claiming it was an “enduring injustice” based on unsubstantiated claims.
Prosecutors have reportedly been delving into whether Trump attempted to obstruct government efforts to recover the files. the saga went like this for months After the National Archives attempted to recover missing documents from his tenure at the White House, the Justice Department eventually sent agents to Florida on a subpoena to recover the files. The recovery culminated in the bombastic FBI search on the 8th of August.
According to reports, those close to Trump are preparing for an indictment that could pose a serious legal threat to the former president. He criticized the ongoing investigation during a CNN A town house-style event was held earlier this month, but also appeared to claim he was allowed to take whatever he wanted when he left the White House in January 2021.
“I took the documents with me; I’m allowed to do that,” he said during the live event. He later added that when he left Washington, he had “lined up boxes on the sidewalk.”
“Everyone knew we were taking these boxes,” Trump said.
Several other investigations into his conduct following his 2020 election defeat are ongoing, including his attempt to overturn the results of Georgia’s presidential election.
