Feds tapped phones of Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, and caught one call with White House: NBC News

Dan Mangan
Published 30 Mins Ago
Updated 2 Mins Ago CNBC.com

Federal authorities wiretapped the phone lines of President Donald Trump's long-time personal lawyer Michael Cohen, NBC News reported Thursday.

At least one call between Cohen's phone and the White House was captured by the wiretap, according to the story.

Cohen is under criminal investigation in New York, where FBI agents in April seized files related to his $130,000 hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels, for which Trump claims to have reimbursed him.

Federal authorities wiretapped phone lines of President Donald Trump's personal lawyer Michael Cohen, and intercepted at least one call between a Cohen line and the White House, NBC News reported Thursday.

It is not known when the wiretap on Cohen was authorized, but it was in place in the weeks before the April 9 raid on his New York City home, hotel room and office by FBI agents, according to NBC News.

Cohen is under criminal investigation by prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York for issues that include his business dealings.

Among the items seized from Cohen last month were files related to a $130,000 payment he made to porn star Stormy Daniels shortly before the 2016 presidential election. Daniels has said the money was in exchange for her promise to keep quiet about an affair she says she had with Trump in 2006.

Daniels lawyer Michael Avenatti, during an appearance on MSNBC said he knew that Michael Cohen's text messages were also tapped by investigators.

"It's a fact," Avenatti said.

It has been previously known that federal prosecutors were monitoring Cohen's email accounts for some time before the April 9 raid.

On Wednesday night, former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani said that Trump had reimbursed Cohen for that payment to Daniels.

Giuliani's statement contradicted previous denials by both Cohen and Trump that the president had not paid Cohen.

Giuliani is now on Trump's legal team for dealing with an ongoing investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller. That probe is focused on Russian interference in the presidential election.

Giuiliani a former U.S. Attorney for the South District of New York.

The Washington Post said he was "furious" when a reporter informed him of the NBC News story. Giuliani said he had been unaware of any such wiretaps on Cohen.

"If they picked up the president, they would have had to notify him," said Giuliani.

He added that if the NBC report is accurate, it would make a "mockery of attorney-client privilege, and would amount to government misconduct.

Giuliani then said he would inform Trump of the news.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/03/feds...-nbc-news.html