- Sam Cabral
- BBC – Washington
3 hours ago
Donald Trump accused of hiding secret records from his presidency
A court document showed that FBI agents found dozens of blank folders, which were stamped as classified, during a search of Donald Trump’s home last month.
The document, released by a Florida court, provides an inventory of the contents of 33 boxes recovered from the former president’s Mar-a-Lago estate.
It also shows that top-secret files have been recovered from his personal office.
Trump, who is under investigation over his handling of classified records, denies any wrongdoing.
Previous court filings have confirmed that the former president keeps secret records in storage areas at Mar-a-Lago, but the document released Friday showed dozens of files in Trump’s office.
Among the items recovered from that room during the unprecedented search on August 8:
• Three documents have been marked confidential
• 17 documents identified as confidential
• Seven documents have been marked “Top Secret”
• 43 empty folders with secret logo
• 28 blank volumes titled “Return to Staff Secretary/Military Assistant”
US presidents must transfer all of their documents and emails to the National Archives.
The Justice Department is examining whether Trump improperly handled the records by moving them from the White House to his Mar-a-Lago after leaving office in January 2021.
Prosecutors allege that Trump and his lawyers failed to voluntarily provide relevant documents, and “likely to hide or remove” the records as part of an effort to obstruct the investigation.
Trump dismissed the allegations, arguing that he had already declassified the documents in his possession. He also said the files were kept securely in a storage room in his home.
But the stockpile revealed on Friday showed that FBI agents had recovered about 1,500 documents from his office, as well as folders bearing secret banners that were empty.
The court file also confirms earlier reports that many records were mixed with personal belongings, including clothing, books and newspapers.
Trump spokesman Taylor Bowdwich said the released document showed the government’s actions “was not an exclusive search and retrieval operation” but a “break-in and theft”.
Separately, U.S. District Judge Eileen Cannon, who ordered the inventory release, is expected to soon issue a ruling on Trump’s legal team’s request for an independent expert to review the confiscated documents.
photo released, EPA
The FBI searched the home of former President Donald Trump on August 8
The former president’s lawyers argue that the legal expert, known as a special supervisor, is necessary to determine whether the files are covered by an executive privilege, which allows superiors to keep certain confidential communications, or an attorney-client privilege.
In Wednesday’s filing, they claimed that without impartial oversight, the Department of Justice “will contest, leak, and publicize selective aspects” of its investigation.
The administration earlier opposed the move as unnecessary, claiming that its review of retrieved records had already been completed. She also said the appointment could delay her investigation as the special supervisor would likely need to obtain security clearance as well as authorization from intelligence agencies to view the material.
In Thursday’s hearing, Judge Cannon indicated she might accede to Trump’s request.
The BBC’s North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher says: “The more detailed inventory of classified material seized by the Department of Justice in its Mar-a-Lago search does not shed much light on what exactly is in the documents.”
“However, what it reveals is their whereabouts.”
“Of the 18 documents listed as top-secret, seven were in Donald Trump’s office, not in the property’s storage area, and 17 out of 54 were classified.”
“This indicates that these top-secret items were not in boxes in the bowels of Mar-a-Lago, but were within the reach of the former president, and perhaps he was within his reach for some reason,” he explains.