What the FBI found at Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate, by the numbers

The “property inventory” unsealed by a federal judge of what FBI agents seized from former president Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home breaks down what was in each of the 27 boxes and other document collections -- including by level of government classification.

Taken together, the government’s court filings since the Aug. 8 search show that the FBI and other federal officials have retrieved 325 documents with classified markings from Mar-a-Lago in the year and a half since Trump left office. These documents feature all three categories of US classification, including the highest level, “Top Secret,” which covers information that “could reasonably be expected to cause exceptionally grave damage to the national security.” 

FBI agents seizure Aug. 8 with search warrant

US District Judge Aileen Cannon on Friday unsealed a more detailed list of items seized by Federal Bureau of Investigation agents on Aug. 8 while executing a search warrant. The information was released by Cannon as she considers Trump’s request for a neutral third party to review the trove of seized documents -- some with classification markings up to the top-secret level -- and flag any potentially privileged material. 

Government documents with classified markings: 103

“Top Secret”: 18

“Secret”: 54

“Confidential”: 31

Documents with classified markings found in Trump’s office: 27

“Top Secret”: 7

“Secret”: 17

“Confidential”: 3

Other government documents and photos without classified markings: 11,179

Empty folders: 90

With “Classified” label: 48

With “Return to Staff Secretary/Miliary [sic] Aide” label: 42

Total “items” seized, boxes or document collections: 33

“Items” with at least one government document: 33

Articles of clothing or other gifts: 19

Books: 33

Press clippings: 1,673

Recovered by DOJ June 3 with a grand jury subpoena

Federal officials went to Mar-a-Lago on June 3 to collect classified documents that were subpoenaed by a grand jury. They were met by attorneys for Trump and the Justice Department said in a court filing the officials were given “a single Redweld envelope, double-wrapped in tape, containing the documents.” A Trump attorney signed a letter at the time stating they’d turned over all documents responsive to the subpoena, which covered all records with “classification markings.”

Government documents with classified markings: 38

“Top Secret”: 17

“Secret”: 16

“Confidential”: 5

Returned by Trump Jan. 18 to the National Archives

After the National Archives started negotiating with Trump and his representatives in May 2021, the agency that acts as a steward of presidential records said it received 15 boxes that had been taken from the White House and been housed at Mar-a-Lago. It was after reviewing the contents that the Archives made a referral to the Justice Department, which started an investigation into the “improper removal and storage of classified information in unauthorized spaces, as well as the unlawful concealment or removal of government records,” according to court filings.

Government documents with classified markings: 184

“Top Secret”: 25

“Secret”: 92

“Confidential”: 67