The 32-page affidavit, even in its redacted form, contains additional details about an ongoing criminal investigation that has brought new legal risk to Trump as he remains a dominant figure in the Republican Party and considers another run for president. It highlights the volume of sensitive government documents housed at Mar-a-Lago. “The government is conducting a criminal investigation into the improper removal and storage of classified information in unauthorized locations, as well as the unlawful concealment or removal of government records,” the affidavit states. The affidavit confirms earlier reports that federal officials notified Trump and his legal team that “Mar-a-Lago does not include a secure location authorized to store classified information.” The FBI filed the affidavit, or affidavit, with a judge so it could obtain a search warrant for Trump’s property. Affidavits usually contain vital information about an investigation, with agents explaining the rationale for why they want to search a particular property and why they believe they are likely to find evidence of a possible crime there. But the affidavits typically remain sealed during pending investigations, making the judge’s decision to release portions of them all the more striking. In recognition of the unusual public interest in the investigation, US Judge Bruce Rinehart last week ordered the department to release a redacted version of the affidavit by Friday. The directive came hours after federal law enforcement officials filed under seal the portions of the affidavit they want to keep secret as their investigation progresses.
An ongoing investigation is reported for corrections
Explaining the need for the corrections in a separate file, the Justice Department said “the affidavit is filled with further details that will provide a road map for anyone intent on obstructing the investigation.” The department also expressed concern about compromising the identities of potential witnesses or FBI agents involved in the investigation. Earlier this week, it was learned that the National Archives and Records Administration recovered more than 100 classified documents, totaling 700 pages, from an initial batch of 15 boxes recovered from the Mar-a-Lago estate earlier this year, according to new public correspondence of the administration with the Trump legal team; An aerial view of former US President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home is shown on August 15 in Palm Beach, Florida (Marco Bello/Reuters) The letter was released Tuesday on the National Archives website. It was published Monday night on a website started by John Solomon, who was appointed by Trump in June as one of his National Archives representatives and is a Trump ally and conservative journalist. In the letter, a National Archives official wrote that the boxes contained items marked as top secret as well as information about special access programs. The affidavit released Friday said the process to retrieve the documents has been ongoing since at least May 2021. Separately, Trump’s lawyers asked a federal judge to halt the FBI’s review of documents recovered from his estate until a neutral special master is appointed to inspect the records. The judge overseeing the case sought clarification from the Trump team after the initial filing. Unlike the ranches of Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush, George HW Bush’s seaside cottage in Maine or Barack Obama’s residences in Hawaii, Trump’s residence has proved a particular challenge. Mar-a-Lago is open to members who pay an annual membership fee after a six-figure initiation fee. During his presidency, a 33-year-old woman was sentenced to prison and then deported after being found on the premises in possession of four mobile phones, a computer and an external hard drive. Prosecutors rejected her defense that she was just looking for pictures of famous people. US President Joe Biden, when asked by a reporter on Friday, said it was up to the Justice Department to determine whether national security was compromised at Trump’s Florida home.
