During their search of former President Donald Trump's Florida resort, FBI agents discovered "top secret" papers, according to documents made public Friday.
Reports that according to the warrant, the unprecedented search was prompted in part by concerns of violations of the US Espionage Act including the unauthorised removal of classified records from the White House as the former President prepared to leave office in January 2021.
The warrant and supporting materials, which were unsealed by a Florida judge, revealed that agents retrieved a significant number of secret files.
As per the unsealed seven-page federal court document stated that some of the documents were labelled "top secret" and were "meant to be only available in special government facilities."
Washington Post citing unidentified individuals close to the investigation reported that sensitive documents linked to nuclear weapons were among the files seized during the raid. Trump attempted to dismiss the claim. He said that the "nuclear weapons issue is a hoax" and even insinuated that the FBI was "planting information".
According to the Wall Street Journal, among the 20 boxes of items hauled away by FBI investigators were photo binders, a handwritten message, and Trump's grant of amnesty to Roger Stone, a former president's ally.
He declared in a statement on Thursday that his attorneys were "cooperating fully" and "the government could have had whatever they wanted, if we had it."
On Friday, the Justice Department sought a federal judge to unseal the search warrant, overruling Trump's objections.
Trump, who is mulling a presidential run in 2024, said he would not obstruct the release of the warrant while lamenting the "unprecedented political weaponization of law enforcement" by "radical left Democrats and possible future political opponents, who have a strong and powerful vested interest in attacking me, much as they have done for the last 6 years."
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