The Justice Department has issued about 40 subpoenas over the past week seeking information about the actions of former President Donald J. Trump and his associates related to the 2020 election and the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, according to people familiar with the situation.
Two top Trump advisers, Boris Epshteyn and Mike Roman, had their phones seized as evidence, those people said.
The department’s actions represent a substantial escalation of a slow-simmer investigation two months before the midterm elections, coinciding with a separate inquiry into Mr. Trump’s hoarding of sensitive documents at his residence in Florida, Mar-a-Lago.
Among those the department has contacted since Wednesday are people who are close to the former president and have played significant roles in his post-White House life.
Those receiving the subpoenas included Dan Scavino, Mr. Trump’s former social media director who rose from working at a Trump-owned golf course to one of his most loyal aides and has remained an adviser after Mr. Trump left office.
The Justice Department also executed search warrants to seize electronic devices from Mr. Epshteyn, a longtime Trump adviser, and Mr. Roman, a campaign strategist, according to people familiar with the events. Federal agents made the seizures last week, the people said.
Bernard Kerik, a former New York City Police commissioner who promoted claims of voter fraud alongside his friend Rudolph W. Giuliani, was issued a subpoena by prosecutors with the U.S. attorneys office in the Washington D.C., his lawyer Timothy Parlatore said on Monday. Mr. Parlatore said his client had initially offered to grant an interview voluntarily.
The new round of subpoenas were issued for a wide range of people around Mr. Trump, from low-level aides to his most senior advisers.
The harassment will continue (unabated) and will include ANYONE whom they feel is a threat. They’ll save the best for just before the midterms.
Hey DOJ/Gestapo! I’m a nobody. However, when you come for me – BE PREPARED TO DIE…
This is all because Trump spoke about a “contingent presidency” and knows if he presses it, the public would want a redo of the 2020 election. I personally think we should go through the process of impeachment, but they were smart in that they put in place people just as corrupt and just as “unelected” as Biden to fill the office of the presidency. Trump is the real President and I can feel his frustration, seeing our country go down like this. Delima