Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani interviewed in Jan. 6 investigation

WASHINGTON (AP) — Rudolph W. Giuliani, who as a member of Donald Trump’s authorized staff sought to overturn 2020 presidential election ends in battleground states, was interviewed not too long ago by investigators with the Justice Department particular counsel’s workplace.

A spokesman for Giuliani confirmed he met with the particular counsel. “The appearance was entirely voluntary and conducted in a professional manner,” Ted Goodman mentioned in an announcement.

An individual accustomed to the matter mentioned the interview was not performed earlier than a grand jury. The individual, who insisted on anonymity to debate an ongoing investigation, wouldn’t say what questions investigators requested.

The interview is a further signal of busy investigative exercise by particular counsel Jack Smith as his staff of prosecutors scrutinizes efforts by Trump and his allies to undo the outcomes of the election within the weeks earlier than the Jan. 6, 2021, riot on the Capitol.

Smith filed a separate case earlier this month charging Trump with illegally retaining categorised paperwork at his Florida residence, Mar-a-Lago.

As a lawyer for Trump, Giuliani pushed bogus authorized challenges to the presidential election outcomes. The authorized staff filed lawsuits in battleground states elevating unsupported claims of huge election fraud although officers, together with Trump’s personal lawyer normal, William Barr, mentioned no such pervasive issues existed.

Giuliani’s efforts have made him a key determine in investigations. He was interviewed final 12 months by a House committee that investigated the run-up to the Jan. 6 assault and by prosecutors in Fulton County, Georgia, who’ve been investigating efforts to subvert that state’s election.

Justice Department prosecutors have for months now been analyzing what position Trump authorized advisers performed in working to undo the election. Last July, John Eastman, a conservative lawyer who aided Trump’s efforts to problem the election outcomes, reported that federal brokers had seized his cellphone.

A spokesman for the particular counsel’s workplace didn’t instantly return an e-mail looking for remark.