The special counsel has sought the Trump Organization’s business records

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Special counsel Jack Smith issued a subpoena in April to Donald Trump’s company seeking any records in 2017, when he became president, of any business deals made in seven foreign countries, according to to someone familiar with the matter.

But the inquiry did little that the public didn’t already know, said this person, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing criminal investigation.

Prosecutors have sought information on any real estate and development deals reached in China, France, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Oman, the person said.

The Trump Organizations public website lists only one deal in that time frame with one of those countries, Oman, and that deal was made after Trump left the White House. Trump officials have said publicly that he will not make any such deals while he is in office.

An email seeking comment from the Trump Organization was not immediately returned. A spokesman for Smith declined to comment.

The purpose of the subpoena, first reported by the New York Times, was not immediately clear. But federal prosecutors are seeking to determine, as they sift through hundreds of classified documents kept at Trumps Mar-a-Lago home and private club in Florida after his term, whether there was any possible financial motive in keeping those papers.

The Washington Post reported last year that while classified documents included sensitive information about US intelligence-gathering aimed at China, among other topics, investigators did not find a clear financial motive in the type of documents recovered from Mar-a-Lago.

The same April subpoena issued by the Smiths’ office also sought details of Trumps deal to host events for the Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf tour, according to the person familiar with the situation.

Smith was appointed in November by Attorney General Merrick Garland to oversee the investigation into classified documents kept at Trump’s home including more than 100 documents recovered in an FBI raid months after his advisers said they had diligently searched the property in response to a subpoena and turned over any and all documents with classified markings.

The Mar-a-Lago investigation centers on two potential felony counts of failure to comply with a subpoena, and possible mishandling of national security secrets for keeping classified documents in an unauthorized location. .

Smith is also overseeing a separate track of Trump-related investigations into the January 6, 2021, riot at the US Capitol, a collection of questions that include Trump-focused fundraising after the 2020 presidential election and efforts to stop the official certification of Joe Bidens victory.

Perry Stein contributed to this report.

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