- The special master in the Mar-a-Lago case asked former President Donald Trump and his attorneys to back up his claim that the FBI “planted” evidence during the search.
The special master appointed to review documents that federal agents seized at Donald Trump’s property in Mar-a-Lago, Florida, gave the former president until next Friday to back up his allegation that the FBI planted evidence when conducting the search. of August 8.
In court papers filed Thursday, Judge Raymond Dearie asked Donald Trump and his attorneys to say definitively whether they believe the FBI planted evidence while serving a search warrant in August at Trump’s residence in Palm Springs, Florida.
On more than one occasion, Donald Trump has claimed that the FBI may have planted evidence during the search.
“This filing will be Plaintiff’s last opportunity to raise any factual dispute as to the completeness and accuracy of the Detailed Property Inventory,” Dearie wrote.
Dearie, chief district judge for the Eastern District Court of New York, was appointed special master for this case earlier this month.
The special master ordered Trump’s team to file an “affidavit” of inventory items removed from Mar-a-Lago that “plaintiff asserts were not seized from the premises,” meaning items that someone put more there.
Dearie also asked Trump’s attorneys to identify what items were seized by agents but not listed in the inventory. “This filing will be Plaintiff’s last opportunity to raise any factual dispute regarding the completeness and accuracy of the Detailed Property Inventory,” the judge wrote.
And he ordered both sides to appear for a status conference on Oct. 6.
Trump’s lawyers have also claimed that Trump declassified documents that were seized during the search. But the special master rejected this during a hearing on Wednesday.