An employee of former President Donald Trump appeared in a Miami courtroom on July 31, facing accusations that he conspired to obstruct justice and lied to investigators probing Mr. Trump’s handling of classified documents.
Because Mr. De Oliveira, of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, hadn’t yet obtained a Florida-based lawyer to represent him, his arraignment hearing was rescheduled to Aug. 10.
In court on July 31, he agreed to turn over his passport and signed an agreement that he would pay $100,000 if he fails to appear for the hearing in Fort Pierce, Florida. Under conditions of his release under that personal bond, Mr. De Oliveira is forbidden from communicating with “fact witnesses” about the case except through attorneys. He also must obtain court permission before traveling outside of southern Florida.
Chief Magistrate Judge Edwin Torres presided over the hearing and read the charges to Mr. De Oliveira. Judge Torres was the same judge who accepted a not-guilty plea from Mr. Nauta last month.
Attorney John Irving, who is based in Washington, accompanied Mr. De Oliveira to court on July 31. After the hearing, Mr. Irving told reporters that he was looking forward to seeing what evidence the government has against his client. He wouldn’t say whether Mr. De Oliveira has been asked to testify against the former president.
Mr. Trump and Mr. Nauta will be allowed to enter a written plea on charges that were added to the revised indictment last week, court records say.
Workers Targeted to ‘Get Trump’
Mr. Trump said of Mr. Nauta and Mr. De Oliveira that the Department of Justice (DOJ) is bent on destroying the lives of “two fine people” who have been his loyal longtime employees.Most of the new charges are related to alleged attempts to delete security camera footage from Mar-a-Lago. The footage shows boxes of records being moved.
The indictment quotes Mr. De Oliveira telling a colleague that the “boss” wanted a server hosting the footage to be deleted.
No News About Biden’s Records
Meanwhile, Mr. Trump has asked whether Mr. Biden will face any charges for possessing classified records that date to his service as a U.S. senator and as vice president. Mr. Trump said that both of those positions lack the authority to declassify records, a power reserved for the president.Mr. Trump has repeatedly alleged that Mr. Biden possessed far more documents than Mr. Trump did.
Although the DOJ has released photographs depicting dozens of boxes of documents stored at Mar-a-Lago, court records show that a much smaller quantity of records is at issue in the case. Mr. Trump turned over 235 pages of documents with classified markings between January and June 2022. Then the FBI found 102 more such documents during its raid of Mar-a-Lago in August 2022.
Charges Pile Up Against Trump
Mr. Smith’s team has probed not only the classified documents case but also Mr. Trump’s conduct relating to his challenge of the 2020 election results, which culminated in the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol breach.In the documents case, Mr. Trump now faces 32 counts of willful retention of national defense information under the Espionage Act and eight counts related to alleged efforts to obstruct the investigation.
Trial is set for May 20, 2024. In the new court filings, the DOJ stated that it intends to keep that date in spite of the additional charges and the addition of a third defendant.
A Fulton County, Georgia, investigation into Mr. Trump’s disputing of that state’s election results is also expected to produce criminal charges against him.