Following the seizure of documents from former president Trump’s Mar-A-Lago residence in Palm Beach on Monday, Trump claimed that FBI agents refused to allow his lawyers to be present and made a baseless accusation that they “planted” evidence while they were on the property.
"Fox & Friends" host Ainsley Earhardt echoed Trump’s accusations Wednesday, claiming agents may have used backpacks to bring in damaging evidence.
This browser does not support the video element.
Trump's attorney Christina Bobb has said FBI agents removed about a dozen boxes of documents. The former president turned over 15 containers earlier this year. Archivists said the boxes had been improperly taken from the White House.
Trump's attorney has not yet released a copy of the search warrant showing what investigators expected to find.
In an angry rant on his Truth Social platform on Wednesday, the twice-impeached former president cast aspersions at the FBI for executing a search warrant on his property.
"The FBI and others from the Federal Government would not let anyone, including my lawyers, be anywhere near the areas that were rummaged and otherwise looked at during the raid on Mar-a-Lago," Trump wrote. "Everyone was asked to leave the premises, they wanted to be left alone, without any witnesses to see what they were doing, taking or, hopefully not, 'planting.'"
There is no evidence that the FBI planted anything during its search of Mar-a-Lago. The search was carried out after the agency obtained a lawful search warrant from a judge who agreed there was probable cause to believe there was evidence of a crime at Trump's resort.
The DOJ obtained security surveillance footage from inside Mar-A-Lago prior to the seizure on Monday. Presumably, that footage will also be available from inside the property during the event.
The White House said it was given no advance notice of the FBI's raid on Mar-a-Lago and maintained that President Biden learned of it through public press reports "just like the American people."
Trump’s attorney continues to insist that he is communicating and cooperating fully with the appropriate agencies. Legal experts say his possession of any government documents, classified or otherwise, could expose him to significant criminal liability.