The Justice Department has officially moved to unseal the search warrant executed by the FBI this week at former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence, according to newly filed court documents.
“On August 8, 2022, the Department of Justice executed a search warrant, issued by this Court upon the requisite finding of probable cause… at the premises located at 1100 S. Ocean Blvd., Palm Beach, Florida 33480, a property of former President Donald J. Trump,” the motion reads.
“At the time the warrant was initially executed, the Department provided notice directly to former President Trump’s counsel. The Department did not make any public statements about the search, and the search apparently attracted little or no public attention as it was taking place. Later that same day, former President Trump issued a public statement acknowledging the execution of the warrant. In the days since, the search warrant and related materials have been the subject of significant interest and attention from news media organizations and other entities,” the Justice Department writes.
The DOJ then argues for unsealing the search warrant, citing “the intense public interest presented by a search of a residence of a former President.”
The filing confirms that the search warrant was “signed and approved by the Court on August 5.” On Thursday, the DOJ filed “the redacted Property Receipt listing items seized pursuant to the search,” according to its unsealing motion.
”Former President Trump, through counsel, was provided copies of each of these documents on August 8, 2022, as part of the execution of the search,” the filing adds.
