Justice Department Thinks Trump In Possession Of More Government Documents: Reports
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The Department of Justice thinks that former President Donald Trump has more classified government documents in his possession and has asked him to return them, according to reports from The New York Times and CNN.
Jay I. Bratt, head of counterintelligence operations for the DOJ, informed Trump’s lawyers that he has not yet returned all of the documents that were supposed to be given to the National Archives when he left the White House in 2021, according to The New York Times.
As CNN reported, Justice Department officials have demanded in recent weeks that any classified documents remaining in Trump’s possession be returned.
The Times first reported on the issue, citing two unnamed sources briefed on the matter. CNN later confirmed the same report.
FBI officials obtained a warrant and searched Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on Aug. 8 to recover classified documents he unlawfully took from the White House. Officials were able to recover at least 20 boxes and 11 pieces of pertinent documents. Trump was found to have had more than 300 classified documents in his possession, with 150 of them being returned to the National Archives.
In June, a lawyer representing Trump had signed a legal document confirming that he had already returned classified documents that were in a storage area at the Mar-a-Lago estate. However, interviews with Trump aides and reviews of security footage led government officials to believe that Trump hadn’t been forthcoming with federal investigators about the documents in his possession.
This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
