WASHINGTON, Aug 26 (Reuters) – The Justice Department on Friday released a redacted version of the court document that justified the FBI’s search of Donald Trump’s Florida residence, which could shed light on the motives behind the incident. this unprecedented initiative for a former President of the United States.
Federal Judge Bruce Reinhart, who validated the search warrant used August 8 by the FBI at the Mar-a-Lago residence, ordered the Justice Department to unseal the document in the public interest. .
The search of Donald Trump’s residence in Palm Beach is the most significant event to date in the many investigations against the former president, which target both his role in the White House and the activities of Trump. Organization.
“The government is conducting a criminal investigation regarding the improper deletion and storage of classified information in unauthorized spaces, as well as the illegal concealment or removal of government records,” the 38-page court document (“affidavit”) reads. , much of which has been deleted.
The FBI raid was aimed at determining whether Donald Trump illegally took any documents when he left the White House in January 2021, after losing the presidential election to Joe Biden, and whether he tried to obstruct the government investigation.
According to the document released on Friday, an unnamed FBI agent said the National Archives Service discovered “documents with classification marks” containing “national defense information” when they recovered 15 boxes of document at Mar-a-Lago in January.
The agent indicated that the Department of Justice had good reason to believe that there were other such documents that had not been returned to the government in January, and that these were still in Donald Trump’s residence.
“There is also probable cause to believe that evidence of obstruction will be found at the scene,” added the officer whose sworn statement was used to justify the issuance of the search warrant.
FBI agents took away on August 8 more than 20 boxes containing official documents, some of which were marked “top secret”.
Prosecutors had asked that the affidavit, which is usually only made public if a person is charged, be placed under seal to protect the secrecy of the investigation, a decision challenged in court by several media.
Judge Bruce Reinhart ruled on Thursday that the Justice Department had legitimate reasons to refuse the publication of certain elements, in particular to preserve the anonymity of certain witnesses and federal agents, but he asked that the less sensitive passages be made public. public. (Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch, with Jacqueline Thomsen, Mike Scarella and Karen Freifeld; French version Tangi Salaün, editing by Matthieu Protard)