One in every of former President Donald Trump’s long-time assistants advised federal investigators that Trump repeatedly wrote to-do lists for her on paperwork from the White Home that had been marked categorized, in accordance with sources acquainted with her statements.
As described to ABC Information, the aide, Molly Michael, advised investigators that — greater than as soon as — she obtained requests or taskings from Trump that had been written on the again of notecards, and he or she later acknowledged these notecards as delicate White Home supplies — with seen classification markings — used to transient Trump whereas he was nonetheless in workplace about cellphone calls with overseas leaders or different international-related issues.
The notecards with classification markings had been at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago property when FBI brokers searched the property on Aug. 8, 2022 — however the supplies weren’t taken by the FBI, in accordance with sources acquainted with what Michael advised investigators.
MORE: Prime Trump marketing campaign aide recognized as key particular person in categorized docs indictment: Sources
When Michael, who was not current for the search, returned to Mar-a-Lago the following day to wash up her workplace area, she discovered the paperwork beneath a drawer organizer and helped switch them to the FBI that very same day, sources advised ABC Information.
The sources mentioned Michael additionally advised federal investigators that final yr she grew more and more involved with how Trump dealt with recurring requests from the Nationwide Archives for the return of all authorities paperwork being saved in containers at Mar-a-Lago — and he or she felt that Trump’s claims about it on the time can be straightforward to disprove, in accordance with the sources.
Sources mentioned that after Trump heard the FBI wished to interview Michael final yr, Trump allegedly advised her, “You do not know something in regards to the containers.”
It is unclear precisely what he meant by that.
Trump pleaded not responsible in June to 37 legal counts associated to his dealing with of categorized supplies, after prosecutors mentioned he repeatedly refused to return a whole lot of paperwork containing categorized info starting from U.S. nuclear secrets and techniques to the nation’s protection capabilities, and took steps to thwart the federal government’s efforts to get the paperwork again. Trump has denied all prices and denounced the probe as a political witch hunt.
As ABC Information beforehand reported, Michael is believed to be the individual recognized in particular counsel Jack Smith’s indictment as “Trump Worker 2,” described within the indictment as somebody who dealt with lots of Trump’s White Home-era containers at Mar-a-Lago and who supplied Trump with images of these containers that had been then included within the indictment.
Michael’s statements to investigators, described to ABC Information by sources, shed additional gentle on the breadth of proof that Smith has amassed to help his case in opposition to Trump.
A Trump spokesperson mentioned that what ABC Information was advised — via what the spokesperson referred to as “unlawful leaks” — lacks “correct context and related info,” and that “President Trump did nothing mistaken, has all the time insisted on fact and transparency, and acted in a correct method, in accordance with the regulation.”
A consultant for Michael declined to remark to ABC Information. The FBI additionally declined to remark.
‘Simply’ disproven
In 2018, Michael turned Trump’s government assistant within the White Home, and he or she continued to work for him when Trump left workplace. However she resigned final yr, within the wake of Trump’s alleged refusal to adjust to the federal requests and the FBI’s subsequent search of Mar-a-Lago.
PHOTO: Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump arrives on the Monument Leaders Rally hosted by the South Dakota Republican Get together, Sept. 8, 2023, in Speedy Metropolis, S.D. (Scott Olson/Getty Pictures)
Talking to federal investigators, Michael recounted how, by late 2021, as many as 90 containers of supplies from Trump’s time as president had been moved right into a basement storage room at Mar-a-Lago, and the way — as stress from the Nationwide Archives mounted — she and Trump aide Walt Nauta would carry containers to Trump’s residence for him to evaluate.
Trump ultimately agreed to show over 15 containers of supplies, which Michael advised investigators she considered as a optimistic signal, sources advised ABC Information.
However then, in accordance with what she advised investigators, across the similar time that the Nationwide Archives discovered practically 200 categorized paperwork within the 15 containers and referred the matter to the FBI, Trump started to look extra reluctant to cooperate with the company, and he requested Michael to assist unfold a message that no extra containers existed, sources mentioned she recounted.
That is when Michael turned involved, understanding that scores extra containers had been within the storage room, sources mentioned. And as Trump continued to assert that there have been no extra containers, Michael even identified to him that many individuals, together with upkeep staff, knew in any other case as a result of that they had all seen that there have been many greater than 15 containers, sources mentioned she advised investigators.
Smith’s indictment in opposition to Trump alleges that Trump requested one in every of his attorneys on the time, “Would not it’s higher if we simply advised them we do not have something right here?”
Talking later with investigators, Michael mentioned she believed early on that claims of no extra containers from Trump had been “simply” disproven, and he or she believed Trump knew they had been false as a result of he knew the contents of these containers higher than anybody else — and since he had beforehand seen {a photograph} of the storage room with all 90 or so containers in it, ABC Information was advised.
The Justice Division was apparently simply as skeptical.
What the FBI did not take
In Could of final yr, satisfied that Trump was nonetheless holding onto a cache of categorized paperwork at Mar-a-Lago, the Justice Division issued a grand jury subpoena to Trump demanding he return any and all categorized paperwork.
In line with the indictment, when Trump legal professional Evan Corcoran then deliberate to seek for any remaining categorized paperwork within the storage room at Mar-a-Lago, Trump directed Nauta and one other aide to take away dozens of containers from the storage room earlier than Corcoran obtained there “in order that many containers weren’t searched and plenty of containers conscious of the … subpoena couldn’t be discovered,” the indictment mentioned.
Corcoran discovered solely 38 categorized paperwork within the containers left within the storage room, and he handed them over to the FBI, together with a certification — allegedly endorsed by Trump — that the previous president had now absolutely complied with the subpoena.
MORE: Timeline: Particular counsel’s investigation into Trump’s dealing with of categorized paperwork
However the FBI nonetheless believed Trump was holding onto much more categorized paperwork, and when FBI brokers performed an unannounced search of Mar-a-Lago three months later, they discovered 102 extra categorized paperwork in Trump’s workplace and elsewhere.
The following day, after the FBI search, Michael returned to work at Mar-a-Lago and located her desk in a little bit of a multitude, with drawers turned over, sources mentioned. Buried beneath a drawer organizer had been the to-do lists Trump had written for her on the backs of briefing notes with classification markings, Michael later recalled to investigators, in accordance with sources.
When Michael found that the FBI hadn’t taken these paperwork of their search of Mar-a-Lago, she helped be sure that they got to the FBI that very same day, the sources advised ABC Information.
PHOTO: This picture contained in a courtroom submitting by the Division of Justice on Aug. 30, 2022, and partially redacted by the supply, reveals a photograph of paperwork seized throughout the Aug. 8 FBI search of former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago property. (Division of Justice through AP, FILE)
It is unclear if Michael notified Trump or others at Mar-a-Lago about her discovery, or if any of these notecards from White Home briefings are among the many 32 completely different categorized paperwork that Trump is charged with unlawfully retaining.
The indictment additionally accuses Trump of making an attempt “to impede the FBI and grand jury investigations” by, amongst different issues, offering “simply a number of the paperwork referred to as for by the grand jury subpoena, whereas claiming that he was cooperating absolutely.”
In her statements to investigators, as described by sources to ABC Information, Michael famous that when the FBI first contacted her for an interview as a part of their investigation final yr, she notified Trump in regards to the request. In response, he advised her, “You do not know something in regards to the containers,” she advised investigators, in accordance with the sources.
‘Something you want from us’
A Trump marketing campaign spokesperson, Steven Cheung, beforehand advised ABC Information that Trump “supplied full cooperation with DOJ, and advised [a] key DOJ official, in individual, ‘Something you want from us, simply tell us.'”
In line with transcripts of contemporaneous voice notes made by Trump legal professional Corcoran and reviewed by ABC Information, Trump did make such a press release on June 3 of final yr at Mar-a-Lago, when a senior Justice Division official and FBI brokers got here to retrieve the 38 categorized paperwork that Corcoran discovered within the basement storage room.
However, in accordance with the indictment, that is the identical day Trump “brought about a false certification to be submitted to the FBI” claiming there have been no extra categorized paperwork. And earlier than Trump spoke with the Justice Division official, lots of his containers had been loaded onto his airplane headed “north for the summer time,” in accordance with the indictment.
MORE: Trump was warned that FBI may raid Mar-a-Lago months forward of time, lawyer’s notes present
As well as, after the Justice Division weeks later issued a second subpoena for safety digital camera footage from inside Mar-a-Lago, Trump tried to have a few of that footage deleted “to hide info from the FBI and grand jury,” the indictment alleged.
Alongside Trump, the indictment additionally charged Nauta and the opposite Trump aide, Carlos de Oliveira, for his or her alleged roles within the conspiracy to cover categorized paperwork from the FBI.
They’ve every pleaded not responsible.
Trump wrote to-do lists for assistant on White Home paperwork marked categorized: Sources initially appeared on abcnews.go.com