Prosecutors questioning witnesses about Trump paying for their attorneys in special counsel probe: report

The investigation into former President Donald Trump's handling of classified documents is focusing on the attorneys for some witnesses in the case, inquiring if any of them sought to influence testimony in order to protect Trump, CNN reported.

Witnesses who either work for Trump or are represented by lawyers provided by him are facing questions from federal prosecutors, asking how they found their lawyers and if they know how they were compensated.

"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," CNN's report stated. "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."

According to CNN, many of the lawyers representing some Trump-aligned witnesses have been paid by Trump’s Save America PAC.

While it's not uncommon for PACs to fund legal representation for individuals who are aligned with their interests, the Save America spending has caught the interest of special counsel investigators.

Similar red flags have gone up in relation to the probe into January 6 and the effort to overturn the 2020 election. Testifying before the House Jan. 6 committee last year, former Trump White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson said that a Trump-backed attorney had tried to coach her fashioning her testimony into a manner that would protect Trump.

Read the full report at CNN.