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Manhattan, New York federal investigators were granted permission to search Rudy Giuliani’s apartment and office. In the early hours of April 28, 2021, criminal investigators — armed with search warrants — started their investigation into his dealings in Ukraine.
Giuliani is the former New York City mayor and personal attorney for former President Donald Trump. Around 6 a.m. (EST) investigators entered the former mayor’s Madison Avenue home and Park Avenue office. They seized all of his electronic devices during their search.
It is an uncommon practice for prosecutors to execute a search warrant against a lawyer. For them to execute one on a former presidential lawyer is almost unheard of. This is a major turning point in the longtime investigation into Giuliani and his dealings.
Robert J. Costello, Giuliani’s Lawyer, said the searches were uncalled for. He stated that his client had previously offered to answer the prosecutors’ questions. Costello called the searches “legal thuggery.” Giuliani’s lawyer went on to ask why they “would do this to anyone…”
Let alone someone who was the associate attorney general, United States attorney, the mayor of New York City and the personal lawyer to the 45th president of the United States.
Giuliani has been under investigation to see if he illegally lobbied the Trump administration in 2019 on the behalf of Ukrainian oligarchs and officials. According to The New York Times, these people may have been helping Giuliani in his search for dirt on Trump’s opponents.
Senior political appointees in the Justice Department repeatedly fought to block such a warrant under Trump’s administration. Last year The New York Times reported, that the senior political appointees’ actions deterred the investigation’s momentum.
President Joe Biden appointed Merrick B. Garland as his attorney when he took office. After Garland was confirmed the Justice Department lifted its objection to the search.
The search warrants did not explicitly accuse Giuliani of any wrongdoing. They just prove the investigation has started an aggressive new phase. In order to secure the search warrants, investigators needed to persuade a judge they had sufficient evidence to believe a crime was committed.
Many people took to social media platforms to express how they felt about Giuliani’s home and office being searched. Some said, “It’s about time.” Others question how he still has yet to be disbarred.
Written by Sheena Robertson
Source:
The New York Times: Federal Investigators Search Rudy Giuliani’s Apartment and Office; by William K. Rashbaum, Ben Protess, and Maggie Haberman
Featured, Top, and Inline Image Courtesy of Gage Skidmore’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License