US Justice Dept. Wanted to Involve FBI in Search for Biden Classified Docs: Reports

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The US Department of Justice considered but abandoned the idea of involving FBI officers to monitor the process of searching for classified documents in the possessions of US President Joe Biden, American media reported on Wednesday, citing sources.

Instead, the two sides agreed that Biden's personal lawyers will inspect his homes and inform the Justice Department as soon as they find any other potentially classified records and organize their seizure by law enforcement agencies, the report said.

The sources were cited as saying that the decision to leave the FBI out was in order to avoid complicating the probe's further stages , as well as due to the fact that Biden's attorneys agreed to cooperation with the investigation and handed over the retrieved classified papers promptly.

Last week, US Attorney General Merrick Garland named Robert Hur as special counsel to investigate Biden's mishandling of classified government documents.

On January 9, US media reported that the president's personal attorneys discovered 10 classified documents pertaining to Ukraine, Iran, and the United Kingdom at a Biden think-tank's office, prompting a federal probe into the matter. A second batch of classified documents was discovered in the garage of the Biden residence in Wilmington, Delaware, while another one-page document was found in an adjacent room.

Congressman Paul Gosar told Sputnik that Republican lawmakers will investigate the matter as a serious felony, which is punishable with a prison sentence of up to 10 years.