A longtime Mar-a-Lago employee who is a central witness in the investigation into former President Donald Trump’s handling of classified documents, aka – “Trump Employee 5” – spoke publicly for the first time in an exclusive interview with CNN.
The classified documents case is one of four criminal cases Trump is facing, although it’s unclear when it will go to trial.
Here are some basic facts about the case:
The case centers around Trump’s handling of classified documents after his presidency and his resistance to the government’s attempts to retrieve the materials he took to Mar-a-Lago from the White House.
Trump’s personal aide, Walt Nauta, and Carlos de Oliveira, Mar-a-Lago’s property manager, have also been charged. All three have pleaded not guilty.
Before the initial charges against Trump were brought in June 2023, officials had tried – and failed – throughout 2021 and 2022 to get back the documents in Trump’s possession. The National Archives, charged with collecting and sorting presidential material, said in early 2022 that at least 15 boxes of White House records were recovered from the estate, including some that were classified.
The government’s efforts culminated in the FBI’s execution of a search warrant at Mar-a-Lago in August 2022, in which federal agents seized thousands of documents, about 100 of which were marked as classified.
Jack Smith was made special counsel to oversee the Justice Department’s investigation into both the documents matter and Trump’s efforts to undermine the results of the 2020 election.
Trump was initially charged with 37 felony counts, alleging he illegally retained national defense information and that he concealed documents in violation of…
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