When Donald Trump left office in January 2021, the FBI began an investigation into the handling of secret materials in the 15 boxes of material that were carried from the White House to Mar-a-Lago, Florida.
According to a report published by the New York Times and the Washington Post on Thursday, April 7, the FBI investigation was sparked by the discovery of ‘top secret’ information in the boxes, which were filled with documents and mementos from Trump’s four years in office.
The National Archives and Records Administration recovered 15 boxes from Trump’s Florida estate on January 2 and announced the recovery publicly in February, claiming that the contents should have been handed over to the National Archives as required by the Presidential Records Act rather than being taken by Trump.
House Oversight Committee Chair Carolyn Maloney wrote a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland on Thursday, April 7, pointing out that the National Archives refused to release the contents of the 15 boxes of materials recovered from Mar-a-Lago and accusing the DOJ of ‘obstructing’ the congressional investigation.
‘The Committee does not desire to impede in any way with the Department of Justice’s possible or existing investigation,’ Maloney stated.
‘However, the Committee has received no explanation from the Department as to why NARA is refusing to provide information to the Committee relating to compliance with the [Presidential Records Act], including unclassified information outlining the contents of the 15 boxes from Mar-a-Lago.’
The Times report went on to say that the ex-president was unlikely to be the focus of the FBI probe.