Alongside the top-secret documents was a cardboard box containing gold-framed photographs, including a Time Magazine cover depicting Mr. Trump with other international leaders.
A photograph depicting top-secret documents discovered by the FBI during a search of Donald Trump’s Florida property has been made public.
The US Justice Department claims to have discovered attempts to hinder its investigation into the discovery of secret materials at the Mar-a-Lago residence of the former president.
Cover sheets of multiple paper-clip-bound classified documents, some of which are marked “top secret/sci” with bright yellow borders, were shown on the floor in the image provided in a court file.
One is labeled “secret/sci” and has a rust-colored border; blank pages are also visible.
A cardboard box containing gold-framed photographs, including a Time Magazine cover featuring Mr. Trump among several other foreign leaders, was placed beside them.
The petition by the department indicates that “government records were likely concealed or taken” from a storage room, even though Mr. Trump’s staff assured inspectors that the property had been fully investigated.
The FBI searched Mr. Trump’s estate on August 8 as part of an investigation into whether he stole secret documents from the White House.
During the search, officers seized 33 boxes holding more than 100 classified data and discovered three confidential documents hidden in office drawers, according to the most recent filing.
The criminal investigation has focused not just on why the papers were retained at the residence, but also on whether the Trump team purposefully deceived investigators about the illegal presence of government secrets.
Examining the storage area
The paper provides additional information about the events that transpired in May and June of this year when FBI and justice department authorities filed a subpoena for missing records and subsequently visited a storage facility on the property.
During that June visit, Mr. Trump’s attorneys assured investigators that all White House records were stored in the storage room, according to the filing.
In addition, they stated that “no other records were held in any private office space or other location on the property” and that “every available box was checked.”
However, the department of justice later stated that it had “discovered evidence that government papers were likely concealed and removed from the storage room and that efforts were likely made to hinder” the inquiry.
Request for a special master
Mr. Trump’s legal team has requested that the files be reviewed by a special master, and a US district judge will shortly hear arguments on the topic.
Attorneys have requested the appointment so that someone is accountable for reviewing the documents and separating those protected by claims of legal privilege.
The judge has stated that she intends to appoint such a person, but she has also given the Department of Justice the right to respond.
On Monday, the agency stated that it had already evaluated the files and detected just a “small group of papers that may include” confidential information.
