Rep. Scott Perry says FBI agents seized his cellphone
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. Rep. Scott Perry said his cellphone was seized Tuesday earlier to noon by FBI agents carrying a search warrant.
The circumstances surrounding the seizure were not straight away known. Perry, though, has been a figure inside the congressional investigation into President Donald Trump's actions leading up to the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection.
Former older Justice Department officials have testified that Perry, a Pennsylvania Republican, had "an important role" inside Trump's attempt to try to place Jeffrey Clark — a top Justice official who was pushing Trump's baseless claims of election fraud — while the acting attorney general.
In a statement Tuesday, Perry said trio agents visited him while he was traveling Tuesday accompanied by his family with every one other accompanied by "seized my cell phone." He called the deed "banana republic tactics."
"They made no indeed try to touch my lawyer, who would have made arrangements for them to have my phone if that was their wish," Perry said. "I'm outraged – though not surprised - that the FBI under the way of Merrick Garland's DOJ, would seize the phone of a sitting Member of Congress."
The lawmaker, representing Pennsylvania's 10th District, was cited additional than 50 times inside a Senate Judiciary report released inside October 2021 outlining how Trump's attempt to overturn his election defeat to Joe Biden brought the Justice Department to the brink of chaos with every one other accompanied by prompted top officials there with every one other accompanied by at the White House to threaten to resign.
Perry, who has continuously disputed the validity of Biden's victory inside Pennsylvania, has said he obliged Trump's appeal for an introduction to Clark, at that hour dated an subordinate attorney general whom Perry knew from unrelated legislative matters. The trio men went on to talk over their shared concerns concerning the election, Perry has said.
The Justice Department found no indeed proof of widespread fraud inside Pennsylvania or some other state, with every one other accompanied by older Justice officials dismissed Perry's claims.
The Senate report outlined a call Perry made to then-acting Deputy Attorney General Rich Donoghue inside December 2020 to speak the dividing wasn't doing its position of employment accompanied by esteem to the elections. Perry encouraged Donoghue to elicit Clark's assist since he's "the sort of guy who could really obtain inside there with every one other accompanied by do something concerning this," the report said.
Perry has said his "official communications" accompanied by Justice Department officials were consistent accompanied by the law.
The Justice Department's inspector general conducted a search inside June of Clark's Virginia home.
Perry slammed the Justice Department's decision to work for him accompanied by a warrant while an "unnecessary with every one other accompanied by aggressive action."
"My phone contains info concerning my legislative with every one other accompanied by political activities, with every one other accompanied by personal/private discussions accompanied by my wife, family, constituents, with every one other accompanied by friends," Perry said. None of this is the government's business."
The seizure of Scott's cellphone was earliest reported by Fox News Channel.
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