Donald Trump says he will soon be charged in connection with the investigation into the Capitol storming and his attempts to overturn the 2020 election results. This would appear from a letter – a so-called target letter – that he received from special prosecutor Jack Smith.
It would be the second federal indictment that the former president will get, but does it bother him?
Trump revealed the receipt of the letter this week on his own messaging platform Truth Social, lashing out at his accusers. In a lengthy message, he described Jack Smith as “disturbed” and called Attorney General Merrick Garland’s actions “unethical.” He also reiterated his claim to be the victim of a political witch hunt. According to the former president, the document states that he must answer to a so-called grand jury for the ‘January 6 investigation’. “Something that almost always ends in an arrest and indictment,” Trump added.
Since last November, Jack Smith and his team have been investigating the events leading up to the storming of the US Parliament building on January 6, 2021. The researchers are looking specifically at the role played by the former president. For example, Trump keeps repeating that he was the true winner of the 2020 election and his campaign team launched numerous ad campaigns to raise money based on false claims of election fraud.
Last December, a mostly Democrat committee of inquiry of the House of Representatives recommended that four criminal charges be brought against Trump. However, those recommendations are not binding on U.S. prosecutors. A Smith spokesman declined to comment on questions about the letter being sent. According to sources close to the former president, Trump does not intend to appear before the jury.
Secret documents
It’s not the first time Trump has made a target letter receives from the Ministry of Justice. After his stint in the White House, Trump took boxes of documents to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, something that is against the law. After he repeatedly failed to comply with requests to hand over the papers, the FBI raided his villa last August. Last June, the former president was told he is being targeted in a federal investigation into the matter. Shortly thereafter, Trump had to report to the federal courthouse in Miami, where he pleaded not guilty. That research is also led by Smith.
In addition, Trump was previously charged in a case that is ongoing in New York state for an illegal hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.
Donations
The legal affairs are not doing the 77-year-old former president any financial harm for the time being. Trump’s team said previous indictments have led to a wave of donations for his election campaign. From April to June, Trump raised more than $17 million for his campaign coffers, according to recently released figures. In addition, millions more would have been deposited into an account that could be used to help fund his legal defense.