(Trends Wide) — At least two dozen people, from staff at the Mar-a-Lago resort to members of Donald Trump’s inner circle at the Florida residence, were summoned to testify before a federal grand jury investigating the former president’s handling of classified documents. , multiple sources familiar with the investigation told Trends Wide.
This Thursday, Trump’s communications adviser, Margo Martin, who worked in the White House and later moved with Trump to Florida, appeared before the grand jury in Washington. The interrogation involved one of the most senior prosecutors, special counsel Jack Smith.
Martin, who is among a small group of former White House aides who have continued to be employed by Trump after he left office, declined to answer any questions when questioned by a Trends Wide reporter.
Smith has sought testimony from a number of people close to Trump, from his own attorneys representing him in the matter to staff who work at Mar-a-Lago, including a housekeeper and servers at the restaurant, the sources said.
The employees are of interest to investigators because of what they may have seen or heard during their daily duties at the resort, including whether they saw boxes or documents in Trump’s office suite or elsewhere.
“They’re bringing multiple resources into play: anyone who may have seen something,” said a source familiar with the Justice Department’s efforts.
For example, federal investigators have spoken with a Mar-a-Lago staffer seen on security camera footage moving boxes from a warehouse with Trump adviser Walt Nauta, who has already met with investigators.
Many of the Mar-a-Lago employees are being represented by lawyers paid by Trump entities, according to sources and federal election records.
The Justice Department has been investigating the possible mishandling of national security records and possible obstruction for about a year. FBI agents recovered more than 100 classified documents during a raid in Mar-a-Lago last summer. Since then, Trump’s legal team has turned over additional classified material.
The federal investigation previously cited senior Trump advisers including former White House Assistant Secretary General Dan Scavino and former Trump adviser and Pentagon official Kash Patel.
Meanwhile, Smith continues to pursue Trump’s defense attorney, Evan Corcoran. In an earlier grand jury appearance, Corcoran declined to answer questions about his conversations with Trump related to the classified documents, citing attorney-client privilege. Prosecutors are asking a judge to rule that he must answer because the conversations may have been part of furthering a crime or fraud.
The Washington District Court is expected to rule on Corcoran later this week.
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