Federal prosecutors investigating former President Donald Trump’s handling of classified documents are pressing multiple witnesses for details about their attorneys, including whether any of them have attempted to influence testimony in order to protect the former president, multiple sources tell CNN.
Investigators have focused these questions toward a group of witnesses who either work for Trump or are represented by lawyers provided by him. In some instances, prosecutors have asked how witnesses found their lawyers and if they know how they were compensated during grand jury sessions.
The line of questioning about Trump-provided attorneys suggests prosecutors are looking at any efforts by the former president to keep control over more than two dozen Mar-a-Lago staffers and political aides who have become central witnesses in recent months, and whose legal bills are paid by Trump. Investigators working for special counsel Jack Smith are exploring multiple facets of a possible obstruction case, and that could include whether testimony has been improperly influenced and coordinated within Trump’s legal network.
No one has been charged with any crime in the federal documents probe. Yet prosecutors in recent weeks have moved aggressively to lock down witness testimony in the grand jury and have gathered significant documentary evidence that has moved them toward potentially making a case, according to one of the sources.
“They wanted to know who’s paying, how did they invoice?” said one person familiar with the matter, referring to questions prosecutors have asked. Prosecutors asked witnesses questions like “‘Did they tell you what to say? Did they get you to alter your testimony?’” The source said. “Even if it were true, would anybody admit it?”
Many of the defense lawyers representing these Trump-aligned witnesses have been paid by…
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