Trump now accuses FBI of ripping off padlock THEY asked him to install on the Mar-a-Lago basement where boxes of documents were kept – as report claims an INFORMANT told agents where to look
- Former President Donald Trump has raged on his Truth Social app several times since his office and private residence were searched by the FBI
- In a recent post he appeared to confirm an earlier CNN report that Justice Department officials made a rare visit to Mar-a-Lago months before the raid
- It comes as one outlet is reporting that an FBI informant tipped off federal agents about what files Trump had and where they were
- The raid is apparently related to documents sought by the National Archives
Donald Trump on Wednesday seemed to confirm a June meeting at Mar-a-Lago between Justice Department officials and his legal team which preceded Monday’s bombshell FBI raid on the ex-president’s property.
Federal officials conducted an unannounced search of the former commander-in-chief’s private residence in Palm Beach, Florida over documents sought by the National Archives, his son Eric Trump said this week.
It comes amid a new Newsweek report that an FBI informant within the ex-president’s circle tipped the feds off to what classified documents Trump had and where.
Trump fumed in a recent post on his Truth Social app that federal agents broke a padlock they allegedly asked him to put on the room where the documents were kept.
‘In early June, the DOJ and FBI asked my legal representatives to put an extra lock on the door leading to the place where boxes were stored in Mar-a-Lago – We Agreed,’ the ex-president wrote.
They were shown the secured area, and the boxes themselves. Then on Monday, with no notification or warning, an army of agents broke into Mar-a-Lago, went to the same storage area, and ripped open the lock that they had asked to be installed.
He finished, ‘A surprise attack, POLITICS, and all the while out Country is going to HELL!’
Earlier this year the National Archives and Records Administration said it took 15 boxes of records out of Mar-a-Lago, roughly 12 months after Trump left office. Some of those files were apparently labeled ‘classified.’
Former U.S. President Donald Trump leaves Trump Tower to meet with New York Attorney General Letitia James for a civil investigation on August 10, 2022 in New York City
It was after his deposition that Trump seemed to confirm an earlier CNN report that Justice Department officials inquired about the documents that were seized by the FBI in-person at Mar-a-Lago in June
The National Archives had asked the Justice Department to look into the ex-president’s potential mishandling of top secret documents, it was reported in May.
Trump’s social media outrage appears to confirm an account published in CNN on Tuesday that detailed the months-long back-and-forth between the National Archives and Trump’s lawyers about recovering files that they believed were still in his possession.
Four top DOJ officials traveled to Mar-a-Lago in early June to speak with the former president’s attorneys about the documents, it was reported by CNN the day after the FBI raid.
The DOJ’s counterintelligence and export control section chief Jay Bratt was reportedly among the group who sat down with Trump’s lawyers.
Trump’s team had also shown the government officials where Trump were storing documents. Investigators reportedly observed that some of the files there were marked as classified.
At one point the former president himself reportedly stopped in to say hello and ‘make small talk’ before leaving again.
Days after the investigators’ visit, they reportedly sent a letter to Trump’s staff on June 8 asking them to secure the room where they observed the documents being stored.
It was then that the padlock was reportedly placed on the door.
But Newsweek’s report claims that the FBI was instead tipped off by an informant about the files.
The informant also reportedly helped feds time the raid for when Trump was away to avoid giving him an opportunity to use it as a political opportunity.
A government source told the outlet that agents were ‘seeking to avoid any media circus’ with the unannounced search.
‘So even though everything made sense bureaucratically and the FBI feared that the documents might be destroyed, they also created the very firestorm they sought to avoid, in ignoring the fallout,’ the person reportedly said.
Trump sounded off on Truth Social just as he was wrapping a an interview with prosecutors from the office of New York Attorney General Letitia James.
The former president bragged earlier about invoking the Fifth Amendment during his deposition – despite years ago suggesting it’s something people guilty of crimes do.
James’ office confirmed Trump’s deposition in an emailed statement and that he invoked his right against self-incrimination.
‘Attorney General Letitia James took part in the deposition during which Mr. Trump invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination,’ a spokesperson for the attorney general’s office said.
‘Attorney General James will pursue the facts and the law wherever they may lead. Our investigation continues.’
New York prosecutors are investigating whether to bring civil charges against the former president and the Trump Organization over allegedly using fraudulent financial statements to obtain favorable deals and tax rates.
His two eldest children, Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump, also spoke with James’ team in recent weeks. Neither reportedly hid behind the Fifth Amendment.
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