Fulton County DA opens criminal investigation into Trump call
District Attorney Fani WIllis sent a letter to multiple state officials to request documents relevant to an investigation be preserved.
The newly elected Fulton County District Attorney has moved to open an investigation into a phone call former president Donald Trump made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in an alleged attempt to change the results of the 2020 Presidential Election.
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D.A. Fani Willis has sent letters to multiple state officials, including Raffensperger, to preserve all documents that are relevant to “an investigation into attempts to influence the administration of the 2020 Georgia General Election,” the New York Times reported.
Although the letter does not reference Trump by name, the Times received a copy and a state official confirmed the letter is related to his intervention.
theGrio reported Democrats pushed for the Federal Bureau of Investigation to follow-up on the phone call. According to the report, Democratic Representatives Ted Lieu and Kathleen Rice issued a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray to launch a criminal inquiry into the former president’s actions and demands.
“We ask you to open an immediate criminal investigation into the president,” they said in their letter. “The evidence of election fraud by Mr. Trump is now in broad daylight. Given the more than ample factual predicate, we are making a criminal referral to you to open an investigation into Mr. Trump.”
On the phone call, Trump asked Raffensperger to find the votes needed for him to be declared winner of the Southern state.
“There’s no way I lost Georgia. There’s no way. We won by hundreds of thousands of votes,” Trump said during the hour-long call according to theGrio. “The people of Georgia are angry. The people in the country are angry. And there’s nothing wrong with saying, ‘you know, um, that you’ve recalculated.’”
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The letter issued by Willis was sent to not only Raffensperger, but also Governor Brian Kemp, Lieutenant Gov. Geoff Duncan and Attorney General Chris Carr.
“This investigation includes, but is not limited to, potential violations of Georgia law prohibiting the solicitation of election fraud, the making of false statements to state and local governmental bodies, conspiracy, racketeering, violation of oath of office and any involvement in violence or threats related to the election’s administration,” the letter stated according to the Times.
According to theGrio, on Monday, the office of the Secretary of State initiated an inquiry into the phone call which took place in January. The former president allegedly called multiple Republican officials to persuade them to find votes push him over President Joe Biden. theGrio reported various complaints were filed over “intentional interference” with another person’s “performance of election duties,” and possible election fraud.
“The secretary of state’s office investigates complaints it receives,” Walter Jones, a spokesman for the office, said in a statement on Monday. “The investigations are fact-finding and administrative in nature. Any further legal efforts will be left to the Attorney General.”
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