Manhattan federal prosecutors have talked about requesting that a court grant them a warrant in order to access the electronic communications of Rudy Giuliani, President Donald Trump’s personal attorney, according to NBC News.
The discussion between Justice Department officials and Manhattan federal prosecutors would indicate an escalation of a federal criminal investigation into Giuliani that has reportedly been continuing for more than a year.
According to department policy, Manhattan federal prosecutors need Washington's approval before they can seek a request from a judge to issue a search warrant for anything that may be protected by attorney-client privilege.
The scope of the probe against Giuliani is unclear, but prosecutors are reportedly reviewing his dealings in Ukraine. Two of his former associates, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, were arrested on charges of campaign finance fraud.
During Trump’s impeachment over his attempt to pressure the Ukrainian government into coming up with dirt on Joe Biden, Parnas released troves of emails and other messages that he had exchanged with Giuliani, TPM reported.
CNN has reported that prosecutors did not want the case to affect the 2020 election and thus the probe was slow-going for several months, but it was reinvigorated after the election, since that concern would no longer be problematic.
Guilliani has reportedly been discussing receiving a preemptive pardon from Trump, although the former New York City mayor denies this.
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
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