US Justice Department’s Special Counsel Robert Mueller has issued a subpoena for the Trump Organization to turn over Russia-related documents, a new report says, a move that suggests the investigation is inching closer to the US president.
The subpoena was delivered in “recent weeks” and includes an order for the Trump Organization to “hand over all documents related to Russia and other topics” the special prosecutor is investigating, the New York Times reported on Thursday, citing two people briefed on the matter.
The order marks the first time that Mueller, who is investigating alleged collusion between US President Donald Trump’s campaign and Russia, has demanded records directly related to the president’s businesses.
In an interview with the daily paper in July, Trump said that Mueller would be crossing a “red line” if he began looking into his businesses and family finances unrelated to Russia.
Mueller has already indicted several Trump associates and more than a dozen Russians accused of meddling in the 2016 presidential campaign.
US intelligence agencies claim Russia-linked hackers provided WikiLeaks with damaging information -- in the form of thousands of hacked emails -- about former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton to skew the 2016 presidential election in favor of Trump.
Trump has repeatedly denied allegations that his campaign colluded with the Russians and has labeled Mueller’s investigation as a “witch hunt.” Russian President Vladimir Putin has also denied the allegations.
Trump has faced criticism over not doing enough to counter Russia as top US intelligence officials have repeatedly warned that Moscow will once again try to disrupt US elections again this year.