Trump: FBI carried out 'raid' on Florida home

Former US President Donald Trump said on Monday the FBI conducted a surprise "raid" at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

"After working and cooperating with the relevant Government agencies, this unannounced raid on my home was not necessary or appropriate," Trump said in a statement.

Trump also said that FBI agents had forced open a safe as part of the search.

In recent months, Trump has been giving strong hints over another bid for president in 2024. Meanwhile, the US Justice Department has been investigating allegations that classified records were taken to Mar-a-Lago after his presidency ended early last year.

A federal law called the US Presidential Records Act requires the preservation of memos, letters, notes, emails, faxes and other written communications related to a president's official duties.

And Monday's search appeared to concern boxes of documents that Trump brought with him from the White House to his luxury Florida home, The New York Times and later The Associated Press reported, citing unnamed people familiar with the probe.

Trump, meanwhile, alleged that the FBI search was "prosecutorial misconduct, the weaponization of the Justice System, and an attack by Radical Left Democrats who desperately don't want me to run for President in 2024, especially based on recent polls, and who will likewise do anything to stop Republicans and Conservatives in the upcoming Midterm Elections."

Probe intensifies

Separately, investigations into the January 6 siege of the US Capitol have been intensifying.

The FBI did not respond to requests for information, and it was unclear whether the reported search was connected to either investigation.

Monday's events come after the US National Archives and Records Administration notified Congress in February that it had reclaimed around 15 boxes of White House documents from Mar-a-Lago, some of which contained classified materials.

jsi/aw (AP, Reuters, AFP)