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U.S. prosecutors pull encrypted messages from phones seized in Cohen raids

Source: Reuters

JUNE 15, 2018 / 4:30 PM / UPDATED 38 MINUTES AGO

Brendan Pierson

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Federal prosecutors investigating U.S. President Donald Trump’s longtime personal lawyer Michael Cohen have extracted more than 700 pages of messages sent using encrypted programs like WhatsApp and Signal on phones seized from Cohen, according to a court filing on Friday.

The prosecutors also said they had reconstructed 16 pages from the contents of a shredding machine taken during raids on Cohen’s home, office and hotel room in April. The prosecutors said in their filing in Manhattan federal court that they had turned the materials over to Cohen’s lawyers, who are expected to review them by June 25.

Prosecutors are investigating Cohen for possible crimes related to his business dealings. The probe stems in part from a referral by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who is investigating whether there was any coordination between associates of Trump’s 2016 campaign and Russia. Trump has repeatedly said there was no collusion, and Russia has denied interference.

Cohen has not been criminally charged, but a source familiar with the investigation told Reuters in April that the federal prosecutors are investigating him for possible bank and tax fraud, and for possible campaign law violations connected with a payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels and matters concerning foreign support of Trump’s campaign.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-...SKBN1JB2V3

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