US Attorney General Merrick Garland asks judge to unseal Trump warrant - BBC News
The top US prosecutor gave a statement days after the FBI searched Donald Trump's Florida home.
The motion to unseal the warrant is a "strong showing" from the justice department that a crime may have taken place, according to a former federal prosecutor.

Kevin McMunigal, a former prosecutor and law professor at Case Western Reserve University, told the BBC that the motion could be an effort to fight back against the notion that the search was a "fishing expedition" by the FBI.

"The affidavit is what the judge relied on. It's not enough to get a conviction, but it's a strong showing that there was a crime," he said. "It's not an easy thing to get."

He also added that it is "unusual" that officials reportedly visited Mar-a-Lago to discuss the issue with the Trump team ahead of the search warrant being carried out.

US media reported that Jay Bratt, the chief of the counter-intelligence and export control section at the justice department, sat down with Trump's lawyers in early June.

The department has not confirmed Bratt's visit and it is unclear why he would be involved.

"One possibility is that they went and tried to get [the Trump team] to give them the documents back, short of doing a search warrant," McMunigal said.

"Or it could be that by doing that, they got some admission from Trump or other folks that they have stuff or were claiming that they have a right to keep it. It will be interesting to see if he [Bratt] is quoted in the affidavit."