The big numbers from the Mar-a-Lago search
Washington (CNN) — The Justice Department inquiry into former President Donald Trump’s potential mishandling of classified documents culminated this week with a historic federal indictment against Trump.
The case is about sensitive government files that Trump took from the White House as he left office in 2021, and brought to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. Court filings last year revealed extraordinary details about the types of documents involved in the investigation.
This marks the first time a former president has faced federal charges.
The National Archives and Records Administration, known as NARA, realized in 2021 that it didn’t receive all the documents it was entitled to from Trump’s time in office. After months of negotiations, Trump voluntarily turned over a batch of material to NARA in January 2022.When classified documents were discovered in those boxes, the Justice Department and FBI got involved, launching a criminal investigation.
Investigators served a grand jury subpoena in June 2022, taking more materials from Mar-a-Lago. And in an unprecedented move, they executed a court-approved search warrant at the resort last August. Months later, Trump’s team conducted additional searches and returned a small number of classified materials to investigators.
Here’s a breakdown of the most important numbers from the criminal probe that led to Trump’s indictment.
Materials voluntarily turned over by Trump to NARA in January 2022
The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) negotiated with former President Donald Trump throughout 2021 to recover documents that he took to Mar-a-Lago while leaving the White House. Trump voluntarily turned over a batch of materials to NARA in January.
Trump voluntarily turned over 15 boxes of materials to the National Archives (NARA) in January. These were materials that Trump took to Mar-a-Lago while leaving the White House.
There were more than 700 pages of materials among the 184 unique classified documents found in the boxes that Trump voluntarily turned over to NARA in January.
FBI agents found 184 unique classified documents in the 15 boxes that Trump voluntarily turned over to NARA in January.
There were 67 classified documents marked “confidential” among the materials that Trump voluntarily turned over in January. This is the lowest level of classification.
There were 92 classified documents marked “secret.” This is the middle level of classification.
There were 25 classified documents marked “top secret.” This is the highest level of classification.
Materials turned over by Trump to DOJ under subpoena in June 2022
The Justice Department subpoenaed Trump in May, 2022, demanding the return of any classified materials that were still at Mar-a-Lago. Trump’s lawyers turned over some subpoenaed documents in June.
Trump’s lawyers handed over one Redweld envelope to the Justice Department in June, weeks after receiving a subpoena demanding any classified records that were still at Mar-a-Lago.
There were 5 documents marked “confidential” in the envelope. This is the lowest level of classification.
FBI agents found 38 unique classified documents in the envelope Trump’s lawyers turned over under subpoena in June.
There were 16 documents marked “secret.” This is the middle level of classification.
There were 17 documents marked “top secret” in the envelope. This is the highest level of classification.
Materials seized by FBI during search of Mar-a-Lago in August 2022
Suspicious that Trump didn’t fully comply with the subpoena, the Justice Department got court approval to search Mar-a-Lago. FBI agents searched the property in August and took away boxes of materials.
The FBI found 103 classified documents among the materials seized from Mar-a-Lago during a court-approved search in August.
The FBI recovered 31 classified documents marked “confidential” during its search of Mar-a-Lago in August. This is the lowest level of classification.
The FBI seized two binders of photos during its search of Mar-a-Lago in August.
Dozens of FBI agents were on the ground at Mar-a-Lago as part of the court-approved search in August.
The FBI recovered 54 classified documents marked “secret” during its search of Mar-a-Lago in August. This is the middle level of classification.
The FBI recovered 18 classified documents marked “top secret” during its search of Mar-a-Lago in August. This is the highest level of classification.
The FBI seized 33 boxes of materials from Mar-a-Lago during a court-approved search in August.
Federal investigators spent approximately nine hours at Mar-a-Lago while executing a search in August.