FILE — An aerial view of former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate is seen Aug. 10, 2022, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)/Inset: File Photo by: zz/Dennis Van Tine/STAR MAX/IPx 2015 11/3/15 Donald Trump at a signing for his book, “Crippled America” held on Nov. 3, 2015, in New York City. (NYC)
A report out Friday alleges that special counsel Jack Smith has interviewed witnesses about a “hidden room” at Donald Trump’s Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, that may not have been examined by investigators who searched the property more than a year ago.
ABC News cited only anonymous “sources familiar” with the details.
In addition to the alleged “hidden room,” a closet was also locked when the FBI first searched Trump’s compound in 2022. Sources told ABC the FBI failed to search the so-called “hidden room” that was adjacent to Trump’s private bedroom.
It is not yet clear whether there were classified documents in the closet or the “hidden room.”
The anonymous sources alleged that FBI agents searching Trump’s property were unable to find a key to unlock the closet and it was later suggested that Trump may have changed the lock months before anyone showed up to search the estate.
Agents were also reportedly told that the stairwell converted into a closet led nowhere. The source told ABC that despite this disclosure, agents simply decided not to open the closet.
A spokesperson for the FBI did not immediately return a request for comment to Law&Crime on Friday.
The report raises new questions about whether Trump may have concealed additional documents on the property following the initial search of Mar-a-Lago in 2022. Some 11,000 records were found then, including over 100 classified documents. He was indicted in June 2023 for willfully and unlawfully retaining them after leaving office.
Trump’s team has dubbed the reporting more of a “desperate attempt” by the Biden administration to interfere in the 2024 election.
There have been no signs that the Justice Department has descended on Mar-a-Lago since Trump’s indictment to conduct additional searches.
Trump faces no less than 40 federal charges in Florida for illegal retention of classified materials as well as allegations that he obstructed efforts by the government to claw the documents back. He has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.
A hearing before U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon in Florida is coming up next month where she will weigh a request from the former president to delay his looming trial in that venue.
The anonymously sourced report by ABC comes just two weeks after Trump’s lawyers filed a motion to compel discovery from federal prosecutors which accused the government of hiding evidence from the defense and just a couple of days after federal prosecutors met for a sealed hearing with Cannon. The hearing was meant to evaluate classified filings by Smith that Trump’s lawyers wanted to scrutinize.
