The National Archives has announced that classified information was in the records the organization collected from former President Donald Trump.
In a letter to the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, U.S. Archivist David S. Ferriero said that the Archives are currently processing the inventory of information they recently retrieved from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence. However, he also revealed that some of the records that have been processed contained classified information.
“NARA has identified items marked as classified national security information within the boxes,” wrote Ferriero. “Because NARA identified classified information in the boxes, NARA staff has been in communication with the Department of Justice.”
While the documents with this information were not identified in the letter, they could involve North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.Newsweek previously reported that correspondence between the two leaders was obtained in Mar-a-Lago. NARA has not commented on these reports.
The letter also detailed how some communications were unable to be initially archived. It is unknown the contents of these communications. However, NARA is attempting to recover some of these interactions.
“NARA has identified certain social media records that were not captured and preserved by the Trump Administration,” wrote Ferriero. “NARA has also learned that some White House staff conducted official business using non-official electronic messaging accounts that were not copied or forwarded into their official electronic messaging accounts, as required by section 2209 of the PRA.”
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The release of this letter comes after NARA obtained records previously located in Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s Florida residence and private club. While reports began circulating that NARA raided the complex, they denied these rumors, saying that their presence on the property was pre-determined by them and Trump officials.
“When a representative informed NARA in December 2021 that they located some records, NARA arranged for them to be securely transported to Washington,” the organization said in a statement at the time. “NARA officials did not visit or “raid” the Mar-a-Lago property.”
Newsweek has reached out to the National Archives for comment but has yet to receive a response.
This is a developing story and will be updated when more information is available.
Update 2/18/2022 at 3:31 p.m. EST: This story has been updated to include additional information.
