Former US President, Donald Trump, has confirmed he has been indicted over his handling of classified documents after he left the White House.
Mr. Trump, 76, faces seven charges including unauthorized retention of classified files, US media reported. The charges are not yet public.
Trump’s post on his social media platform, Truth, correctly described the magnitude of his indictment over the alleged mishandling of classified documents – though completely ignored any personal culpability in the case.
“The corrupt Biden Administration has informed my attorneys that I have been Indicted, seemingly over the Boxes Hoax.”
It is a historical moment in the United States as this is the first time a sitting or former commander-in-chief has faced federal charges.
READ ALSO: Trump Raped Me, Lied And Shattered My Reputation, Writer Jean Carroll Tells New York Jury
There was no immediate confirmation from the Justice Department.
Trump’s attorney Jim Trusty told CNN that his client has been indicted on seven charges including the willful retention of documents in violation of the Espionage Act, making false statements, obstruction of justice and a count of conspiracy.
Though the precise details of the charges were not immediately clear, people familiar with the matter told The New York Times the conspiracy charge was related to obstruction of justice.
In his post, Trump, who is running for president again, said he has been summoned to a federal courthouse in Miami next Tuesday — the day before his 77th birthday.
His announcement came a day after US media said federal prosecutors had informed his lawyers that he is the target of the probe into his handling of classified documents.
Trump was already the first former or sitting president to be charged with a crime — in his case over election-eve hush money payments to a porn star who said she had an affair with him.
That indictment was handed down by Manhattan’s district attorney in March.
In a statement after his initial online posts, the Trump campaign lashed out at what it called an “unprecedented abuse of power,” and called for the indictment to be thrown out.
READ ALSO: Trump, Pope, Ronaldo Lose Legacy Blue Ticks on Twitter
Criminal probes of former presidents and current presidential candidates might be business as usual in tottering developing world states. But there’s no parallel for an ex-commander in chief facing federal charges in the US, much less one who has already incited violence in order to advance his political ends and is currently running to recapture the White House.
America’s legal and political institutions, which were repeatedly torn apart by Trump’s tumultuous term in office, may now face their biggest test from an ex-president who was impeached twice, tried to steal an election and is already facing a separate criminal trial next March.
If that was not serious enough, these federal charges – related to classified documents that Trump took to his Mar-a-Lago resort – are coming down at a moment when Trump is the front-runner for the Republican nomination in 2024.
These seven counts bring a host of political complications, even if the Justice Department will argue that it’s simply following the evidence and is proving that no one, not even former presidents, are above the law.
In a defiant video released after he shared the news, Trump repeatedly declared his innocence and framed the indictment as a form of election interference by a Justice Department “weaponized” by the Biden administration.
“They come after me because now we’re leading in the polls again by a lot against Biden,” Trump said in the clip.
READ ALSO: Trump’s Legal Team Informed He Is A Target Of Investigation Over Classified Docs
“Our country is going to hell and they come after Donald Trump… We can’t let this continue.”
Fellow Republicans swiftly stood by him, including Speaker of the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy, who has had a rollercoaster relationship with Trump.
“Today is indeed a dark day for the United States of America. It is unconscionable for a President to indict the leading candidate opposing him,” McCarthy said in a statement.
“I, and every American who believes in the rule of law, stand with President Trump.”
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a rival for the GOP presidential nomination, echoed Trump’s claims of a “weaponized” DOJ, adding on Twitter that he would “excise political bias” if elected president.
The Twitter account of Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee posted a repeated Trump slogan: “WITCH HUNT.”
Special counsel Jack Smith, named by US Attorney General Merrick Garland, has been looking into a cache of classified documents that Trump had stored at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida after leaving the White House.
The FBI carted away some 11,000 papers after serving a search warrant on Mar-a-Lago in August, and obstruction-of-justice charges could be a result of his resisting efforts to recover the trove.
Trump eventually turned over 15 boxes containing almost 200 classified documents to the National Archives in January 2022 but was subpoenaed for any outstanding records in his possession.
When asked about the charges Thursday night, Smith’s spokesman Peter Carr told AFP: “We are declining to comment.”
The White House said it learned of the indictment from media coverage and a spokesperson declined to comment on the news, noting that the DOJ “conducts its criminal investigations independently,” CNN reported.
