CNN
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Two documents with classified marks were found in a storage unit in Florida during a search by a team hired by lawyers for former President Donald Trump, a person familiar with the situation told CNN.
These documents were turned over to the FBI. No other documents with classified marks were found during a search of four of Trump’s properties, the source said.
The discovery of the documents was first reported by the Washington Post.
The two-person team searched Trump Tower in New York, the Bedminster Golf Club, an office in Florida and the storage unit where the two documents were found and where the General Services Administration had shipped the personal effects of Trump after leaving the White House.
The four searches took place amid concerns the Justice Department that all documents had not been returned to the federal government. Conducted in recent weeks, the searches were overseen by Trump’s legal team, another source familiar with the matter told CNN.
Trump’s lawyers offered to let federal investigators observe the search at his Bedminster property, but that offer was declined. Given the Justice Department’s response, Trump’s attorneys have not made a similar offer to search for the other properties.
It would be highly unusual for the Department of Justice to observe searches that are not conducted by law enforcement. The department declined to comment. Steven Cheung, Trump’s spokesman, said the former president and his attorney “continue to be cooperative and transparent.”
It’s unclear what subsequent contact has been between Trump’s legal team and federal investigators since the searches.
CNN previously reported exclusively that Trump’s legal team was considering allowing federal agents to re-search Mar-a-Lago to satisfy court demands that all sensitive government documents be returned. The case was dealt with in court proceedings this fall where the Justice Department asked a judge to issue an order requiring the Trump team to organize another search.
This story and title were updated with additional information on Wednesday.
