Special counsel Jack Smith’s office said on Friday that former president Donald Trump might have broken his release conditions by buying a pistol, even though Trump’s spokesperson insists he didn’t.
According to The Associated Press, Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung tweeted on September 25 that Trump had bought a rifle in South Carolina before later retracting his statement and deleting the post. Trump “potentially” breached the conditions of his release, according to prosecutors in a court filing on Friday night. They cited a federal rule that prohibits receiving a handgun while being investigated for a crime carrying a sentence of more than a year in prison.
Prosecutors noted in a footnote that “the defendant either sought to profit from his supporters’ mistaken belief that he did so, or purchased a gun in violation of the law and his release conditions.”
“To purchase a gun while this felony indictment is ongoing would be a separate federal crime and a violation of the defendant’s conditions of release,” the judge wrote.
Later, a Trump official emphasized that although the former president had intended to buy a pistol, he had not done so. Despite saying he wanted to acquire the weapon, Trump was not observed