Walt Nauta.Photo:Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images
Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images
Donald Trump’s personal valet, Waltine “Walt” Nauta pleaded not guilty on Thursday in the ongoing classified documents case that charges him as a co-conspirator of the former president.
Appearing in person in a Miami courtroom, Nautaentered his plea via his attorney.
Prosecutors claim that Nautamoved boxes containing classified documentsat Trump’s private Palm Beach club, Mar-a-Lago. Last month, Nauta was named in six counts in the indictment, including concealing a document in a federal investigation, withholding a document in a federal investigation, and conspiracy to obstruct justice.
Trump, meanwhile, has been indicted on 37 counts in the case, 31 of which were counts of willful retention of national defense information (a violation of the Espionage Act). The other six include one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice; one count of withholding a document or record; one count of corruptly concealing a document or record; one count of concealing a document in a federal investigation; one count of scheme to conceal; and one count of false statements and representations.
The 45th president pleaded not guilty on the charges at hisJune 13 arraignment, andhe is expected to begin his criminal trial in August.
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Nauta, a U.S. Navy veteran who reportedly met the then-president in the Navy-run White House Mess Hall, has continued to work for Trump since he left the White House, moving to Palm Beach to continue working as his aide and valet.
Since moving to Palm Beach, Nauta has worked as Trump’s military valet, akin to a personal assistant. As such, he has been responsible for things like fetching the then-President Diet Cokes and other small tasks and errands, with one former Trump senior adviser saying that Nauta would also pick up dry cleaning and shadow Trump on golf courses.
But prosecutors claim Nauta also conspired with the former president to hide classified documents from both investigators and Trump’s own attorneys, with an unsealed indictment alleging that he removed 64 boxes from a storage room at Mar-a-Lago and only returned 30 boxes, leaving 34 boxes unaccounted for.
Nauta is accused of telling investigators initially that he was “not aware of Trump’s boxes being brought to Trump’s residence for his review,” a statement prosecutors found to be false.
Trump, meanwhile, has praised his loyalty, calling him “strong, brave and a great patriot” on social media.
source: people.com
