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Trump says he expects to be indicted in Capitol riot probe / Photo: Mandel NGAN - AFP
Trump says he expects to be indicted in Capitol riot probe
Former US president Donald Trump said Tuesday he has received a letter from prosecutors suggesting he is likely to be criminally indicted over the January 6 riot at the US Capitol.
"Deranged Jack Smith, the prosecutor with Joe Biden's DOJ, sent a letter... stating that I am a TARGET of the January 6 Grand Jury investigation," Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform.
The former president, the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, said he received the letter on Sunday and was given "a very short four days" to report to a grand jury, "which almost always means an Arrest and Indictment."
"This witch hunt is all about election interference and a complete and total political weaponization of law enforcement," Trump said. "It is a very sad and dark period for our Nation!"
The 77-year-old Trump is already facing charges brought by Smith, the special counsel, for mishandling top secret government documents after leaving the White House.
According to the indictment, Trump kept the files -- which included classified records from the Pentagon, CIA and National Security Agency -- unsecured at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida.
The judge presiding over the documents case is to hold a hearing later Tuesday to discuss a date for the trial to begin.
Prosecutors have asked for a December start while Trump's defense attorneys have asked for it to begin after the November 2024 presidential election.
- Multiple probes -
Smith has also been investigating Trump's efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, as well as the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol by his supporters seeking to block congressional certification of Biden's victory.
Georgia prosecutors are also investigating whether Trump illegally attempted to overturn the 2020 presidential election outcome in the southern state.
In his Truth Social post, Trump argued that he has "the right to protest an Election that I am fully convinced was Rigged and Stolen" and said he was being targeted because of the upcoming election.
The Justice Department has "effectively issued a third indictment and Arrest of Joe Biden's NUMBER ONE POLITICAL OPPONENT, who is largely dominating him in the race for the Presidency," Trump said.
"Nothing like this has ever happened in our Country before, or even close."
According to The Washington Post, a target letter does not necessarily mean charges will be brought against the recipient. In his Truth Social post, Trump did not specify what any potential charges against him might be.
W.Richard--SMC
