FBI found classified document on foreign power’s nuclear capabilities at Trump home: report
- Trump is under investigation for removing government records, some highly classified, and keeping them in his Mar-a-Lago home
- FBI search at Trump’s home found documents about a foreign government’s nuclear defence system, report says
One of the classified documents seized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation at former US president Donald Trump’s Florida residence described the nuclear capabilities and military defences of a foreign power, The Washington Post reported.
The newspaper, citing unnamed sources familiar with the case, said that some of the documents found in Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence were so highly classified that only the president and cabinet or near-cabinet level officials would be cleared to authorise other government officials to access them.
It did not name the country whose defence and nuclear capabilities were cited in the document.
Trump representatives and the Justice Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
According to the Post, such documents require special clearances on a need-to-know basis, rather than a generic top-secret clearance.
There were no details as to where in the residence, which also serves as a private members club, the highly sensitive material was found, or under what type of security.
Trump calls Biden ‘enemy of the state’ for FBI Mar-a-Lago raid, teases 2024 run
Trump is facing mounting legal pressure, with the Justice Department saying top secret documents were “likely concealed” to obstruct an FBI probe into Trump’s potential mishandling of classified materials.
When agents searched the Mar-a-Lago resort on August 8, they found material so sensitive that “even the FBI counter-intelligence personnel and DOJ lawyers conducting the review required additional clearances before they were permitted to review certain documents,” a government court filing said.
The FBI raid came after a review of “highly classified” records that Trump finally surrendered to authorities in January after months of back and forth with the National Archives and Records Administration.
The 15 boxes handed over by Trump were found to contain 184 documents marked as confidential, secret or top secret.
01:36
FBI raids former US President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home
After prompting from the FBI, Trump’s lawyer eventually turned over an additional 38 classified documents – and provided “sworn certification” that they represented the last of the material.
But the FBI went on to uncover “multiple sources of evidence” showing classified documents remained at Mar-a-Lago.
Trump, without evidence, has accused the Justice Department of launching a partisan witch-hunt against him. His lawyers argued that the appointment of an independent third-party to review the materials would be an important check on the government.
Agence France-Presse and Reuters
