Trump registration statement released with vast majority of information blacked out

The affidavit states that the documents could put clandestine intelligence sources at risk

The statement that served to justify the search of Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump's mansion in Florida, is already public, but the released version has practically half of the content crossed out. In the full version of that affidavit are the indications of a crime against the former Republican president, but none of the sources or the specific evidence have been revealed this Friday. There are only a few novel notes, including that the FBI feared that Trump's withholding of the documents was endangering the identity of "human sources of clandestine intelligence."

The report is signed by an FBI special agent whose identity is not disclosed, but who is said to have training in counterintelligence and espionage investigations. Allusions to the course of the investigation have also been crossed out. Yes, the origin of the case is reconstructed, with the give and take by the National Archives so that Trump would return the documentation required by law, first, and with the surprise, later, that when he delivered 15 boxes there were in them 184 classified documents. Of those, 67 were marked as confidential; 92, as secret, and 25, as top secret.

The FBI had indications that Trump kept more classified documents at Mar-a-Lago and so requested the search. But the bulk of these signs, including some photographs, apparently, are crossed out in the document made public this Friday. “The FBI investigation has established that documents with classification marks, which appear to contain National Defense Information, were among the materials contained in the 15 boxes [delivered to the Archives last January following repeated requests] and were stored in the facilities [of Mar-a-Lago] in an unauthorized place,” says the statement.

“There is probable cause to believe that other documents containing classified National Defense Information or that are presidential documents subject to record retention requirements currently remain at the facility. There is also probable cause to believe that evidence of obstruction will be found,” adds the special agent who signs the affidavit.