More Trouble For Trump As New Details Emerges Of What FBI Found At His Mar-a- Lago Home During Raid
The Espionage Act case against former President Donald Trump, unsealed court document has revealed the discovery of additional classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago residence.
According to a report by Raw Story on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, this disclosure comes despite an earlier FBI raid that was believed to have secured all sensitive materials from the property.
According to the 87-page document, unsealed by U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell, Trump’s attorneys uncovered more classified documents during subsequent searches of his properties, including Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey, Trump Tower in Manhattan, and other storage units and offices.
These searches were conducted following a subpoena for the return of all remaining classified documents in Trump’s possession.
The findings are outlined in Special Counsel Jack Smith’s prosecution of Trump, who is facing 40 felony charges, with 32 directly related to the mishandling of classified documents.
Howell’s document states that some of the newly discovered documents were located in a Mar-a-Lago bedroom and a closet, raising serious questions about the thoroughness of the initial FBI search and the cooperation from Trump’s team.
“No excuse is provided as to how the former president could miss the classified-marked documents found in his own bedroom at Mar-a-Lago,” Howell wrote.
The judge criticized the former president for what she described as intentional obstruction of the government’s investigation.
Howell asserts that Trump purposely concealed the existence of additional classified documents from his attorneys, thus violating the obstruction statute.
Further complicating the case is U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon’s handling of the trial.
Judge Cannon has recently placed an indefinite suspension on the proceedings, a move that has drawn criticism from legal experts.
Professor Joyce Vance, a former U.S. Attorney and legal contributor to MSNBC/NBC News, commented, “This makes Judge Cannon’s foot-dragging on this case even more incomprehensible. Not like it involves serious matters, or anything.”
Special Counsel Jack Smith believes Trump orchestrated efforts to obscure the movement of classified documents.
ABC News reports that Smith’s team has evidence suggesting Trump instructed aides to return several boxes to Mar-a-Lago’s storage room without being captured on surveillance cameras.
This claim is supported by the actions of co-defendant Walt Nauta, who allegedly changed his travel plans to facilitate this move.
Judge Howell’s document includes detailed accounts of these maneuvers, describing a scramble initiated by a June 24, 2022, phone call from Trump attorney Evan Corcoran to Trump.
This call purportedly set off a chain of events, leading Nauta to travel from Bedminster to Palm Beach.
The government argues this urgency stemmed from Trump’s realization that the removal of boxes had been recorded on camera, prompting attempts to move the boxes back undetected.
The document also highlights a suspicious gap in surveillance footage. Howell notes the absence of video evidence showing the return of boxes to the storage room, a task that had to occur between June 3 and August 8, 2022.
The latter date marks the execution of the FBI search warrant, during which agents counted 73 boxes.
These revelations add another layer of complexity to the already convoluted case, underscoring ongoing concerns about document security and potential obstruction.
As the legal battle unfolds, the findings raise critical questions about transparency and accountability within Trump’s inner circle.
