Donald Trump aide Kash Patel is set to testify before a grand jury investigating the handling of secret documents at Mar-a-Lago after being grand immunity from prosecution, a report says.
Mr Patel, who worked in the Trump administration, will “soon testify” before the federal grand jury The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday evening.
In June, Mr Trump named Mr Patel as one of his official representatives to the National Archives and Records Administration.
When Mr Patel appeared before the grand jury previously in October, Mr Patel reportedly invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.
Mr Patel has claimed that Mr Trump declassified White Hosue documents while still president.
“A federal judge recently decided the Justice Department couldn’t force Mr Patel to testify without such protection against his statements being used against him in some future prosecution,” the newspaper reported.
“That ruling, the people said, opens the door for Mr Patel, who says Mr Trump broadly declassified White House documents while still president, to answer questions.”
The grant of immunity means prosecutors would only be able to charge Mr Patel with “information obtained independently of his immunized testimony,” the newspaper reported.”
The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted a court-approved search on 8 August at the Mar-a-Lago estate, seizing more than 11,000 documents, of which at least 100 were marked classified.
Mr Patel served as a national security and defence official during the Trump administration before becoming one of Mr Trump’s designees to interact with the National Archives and the Justice Department.
The adviser earlier claimed that he “personally witnessed” the 45th president declassifying records before he left the presidency. “On the way out of the White House he issued further declassification orders declassifying whole sets of documents,” he told Fox News.
“He can literally stand over a set of documents and say these are now declassified and that is done with definitive action immediately,” Mr Patel added.
