Newly released court papers and grand jury subpoenas reviewed by Reuters show the special counsel investigation code-named Arctic Frost included broad requests for Kash Patel’s personal data. Patel was a private citizen when the probe began in 2022 and is now the FBI director.

What investigators asked for

According to the documents, the subpoenas sent to Verizon sought a lot of information. That list included more than two years of phone records, text message logs, online user names, mailing and email addresses, billing and IP addresses, and bank account information. The records covered call and text logs including session times and call durations but not the actual contents of calls or messages.

Timeframes in the subpoenas

  • One subpoena covered January 1, 2021 through November 23, 2023.
  • The other covered October 1, 2020 through February 22, 2023.

Why this happened

Former Special Counsel Jack Smith’s team issued the subpoenas as part of a wider investigation into whether President Donald Trump interfered with the 2020 election and improperly handled classified documents at Mar-a-Lago. The precise focus on Patel and any specific allegations against him have not been made clear in the public documents.

Who released the documents

Republican Senators Charles Grassley, Ron Johnson, and Ted Cruz authorized the public release of the materials. Their disclosure came shortly before a House subcommittee hearing that will examine Smith’s Arctic Frost probe.

Responses and context

An FBI spokesman criticized Smith and the bureaus actions at the time, saying the records show improper conduct and that the FBI under prior leadership had been weaponized. A spokesman for Smith did not respond to requests tied to this review, though Smith has told Congress that his investigators were focused on possible obstruction of justice and that his office followed Justice Department policies and legal rules.

Democrats in Congress have defended the special counsel, noting that it is not unusual for investigators to subpoena phone and account records while pursuing evidence, even for high-profile people. Former FBI Director Christopher Wray did not provide a comment.

Legal orders and other details

A U.S. Magistrate Judge, James Mazzone, issued a nondisclosure order on November 30, 2022, saying the court had reasonable grounds to believe disclosure of the subpoenas could lead to flight from prosecution, destruction or tampering with evidence, intimidation of potential witnesses, and serious jeopardy to the investigation.

Reuters was not able to determine whether Verizon complied with the subpoenas or how any records might have been used. Verizon did not respond to requests for comment.

Related notes

Previous reporting showed Smiths team also sought phone records for Susie Wiles while she was a private citizen involved with Trumps 2024 campaign. Reuters could not determine whether the probe into Wiles was as extensive as the one described for Patel.

Patel has publicly said in 2022 that he believed Trump had declassified the documents that were taken to Mar-a-Lago. Prosecutors disputed that claim and Trumps lawyers did not raise it in court. Patel was summoned to a grand jury in 2022 after receiving limited immunity from criminal prosecution.

From the Hill

Republican Senator Charles Grassley, the subcommittee chair looking into Arctic Frost, said his oversight shows that the more investigators dig, the more they find.