According to the New York Post reported on the 28th, a person familiar with the US law enforcement department said that the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents raided and searched the apartment and office of Trump's personal lawyer Giuliani in Manhattan on the morning of the 28th local time. The agents, who were in possession of search warrants, confiscated some electronic equipment from two locations. It is reported that the operation is related to the investigation of the "Giuliani and Ukrainian transaction" incident.
Giuliani Image source: The Associated Press
According to US media sources, federal agents searched Giuliani's apartment and office around 6 a.m. The New York Times said the raid marked an escalation in the FBI's investigation into Giuliani on suspicion that he had illegally lobbied former President Trump on behalf of Ukrainian officials and oligarchs. Ukrainian officials have also helped Giuliani dig up scandals against Trump's political opponents, including current U.S. President Joe Biden and his son Hunter.
Giuliani's attorney, Robert Costello, said Giuliani was woken up by FBI agents who confiscated his cell phone and other devices. In Giuliani's office, agents seized a computer used by his longtime assistant, Jo Ann Zafonte, who was also summoned to attend a hearing at a federal court grand jury next month.
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Costello said, "They want giuliani to look like a criminal, and he [referring to Giuliani] did nothing wrong." He also called the raid a "judicial atrocity."
Giuliani's son, Andrew Giuliani, slammed the FBI's search of his father's apartment and law firm on Wednesday, claiming it was Obama-nominated judge who signed the search warrant. Andrew said, "It's disgusting. This is absolutely ridiculous. This must stop. If that could happen to former presidents' lawyers, it could happen to any American as well. ”
Giuliani's son slammed the FBI for searching his father's apartment and law firm
Andrew also noted that FBI agents refused to take a copy of the Hard Drive of Hunter Biden's computer held by his father. "The only evidence they didn't pick up today is the only evidence that exists there that can convict," he said. That's not my father's, it belongs to the son of the current president. ”
The New York Times noted that Justice Department investigators have been trying to obtain a search warrant for months. Before Biden took office, Trump-appointed Justice Department officials had tried to block the approval of search warrants.