Carlos De Oliveira, Named New Defendant In Trump Classified Documents Case, Seeks Lawyer

Carlos De Oliveira, the property manager of Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence, appeared in court on Monday to face charges related to Trump’s retention of national security information.

Now, he’s seeking a new lawyer to represent him in the case. Federal law requires that he be represented by someone who is a member of the state bar.

De Oliveira was named a new defendant in the classified documents case on Thursday after Special Counsel Jack Smith presented evidence that he had plotted with Trump to delete security footage from cameras stationed outside a storage room at Mar-a-Lago.

The indictment also charged De Oliveira with lying to federal investigators, as he denied knowing anything about the boxes of documents that Trump was keeping at his Florida residence.

De Oliveira did not enter a plea at his hearing in Miami on Monday. The chief magistrate judge, Edwin Torres, released him on a $100,000 personal surety bond. De Oliveira was ordered to remain in the Southern District of Florida and not interact with any of the other witnesses in the case.

The Trump aid is not the only low-level Mar-a-Lago worker to become entangled in the former president’s crimes. Walt Nauta was indicted with Trump after prosecutors discovered video evidence of him moving documents around the property, an act that Nauta repeatedly denied.

Smith also charged the former president with three new counts on Thursday: attempting to “alter, destroy, mutilate or conceal evidence;” including someone else to do so; and violating the Espionage Act by sharing national security information with visitors at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey.

De Oliveira will appear in Federal District Court in Fort Pierce, Florida, for a formal arraignment on August 10.

Article by Ava Lombardi