Whistleblower accuses Ed Martin of ‘concealing and destroying’ records related to DOJ’s weaponization group

A whistleblower has accused Ed Martin of “concealing and destroying” communications related to his work as head of the Weaponization Working Group, sparking an investigation by House Judiciary Democrats.

President Trump tapped Martin to investigate a number of probes into Trump’s conduct, with the attorney reviewing the work of former special counsel Jack Smith and the suite of prosecutors who brought charges against the president. He has also played a key role in investigations and prosecutions of some Trump foes.

Judiciary Democrats on Monday asked Martin for “a complete inventory of all personal devices, email accounts, messaging applications, and social media accounts” he has used for work.

“My staff have received credible allegations that you are violating federal law by concealing and destroying your communications in order to hide the activities of the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Weaponization Working Group,” Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), the top Democrat on the panel, wrote to Martin.

“As you are well aware, as one of America’s top-ranking federal lawyers charged with supervising enforcement of these laws, you are obligated to follow the law yourself and preserve messages related to your DOJ work in the official DOJ systems. Your purported failure to do so is not only illegal but it also suggests that you are knowingly covering up incriminating conversations that you need to keep off the books.”

Martin is a controversial figure, who earlier this year failed to secure Senate backing for a U.S. attorney role after a tumultuous 120-day tenure serving in D.C. in an interim capacity, firing off letters threatening to prosecute those who challenged Elon Musk and raising the specter of charges for sitting lawmakers.

But he has since landed at the Justice Department in a role that encompasses multiple official titles and gives him far-reaching power.

Beyond his work reviewing “unethical prosecutions” related to Jan. 6., Martin is also the U.S. pardon attorney. From that perch, Martin said he plans to review former President Biden’s use of the power, though the job traditionally focuses on recommending candidates for consideration. 

He has also since been named as a special attorney for mortgage fraud. The Trump administration has brought or is preparing to bring charges against four Democrats related to mortgages they’ve secured for their homes, including an ongoing case against New York Attorney General Letitia James (D), who previously sued the Trump Organization. Martin was seen posing for photos outside James’s house in the lead up to the case.

The broad portfolio puts Martin at the center of some of DOJ’s most scrutinized work, activity sure to be a top focus of Democrats should they regain control of either chamber of Congress.

The letter demands all of Martin’s documents and communications, including any with the White House and with Bill Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency who has been making criminal referrals related to mortgages.

Raskin also asks Martin to certify that he has preserved all records and forwarded them to DOJ, a document that carries legal weight and that would create further problems for Martin if those statements were later proven false.

The Justice Department declined to comment.

Trump figures have faced numerous accusations of using apps like Signal in an attempt to sidestep public records laws that require the preservation of all communications tied to official business.

Several Trump Cabinet members’ use of the encrypted messaging app to discuss a pending strike in Yemen dominated headlines for weeks, with critics noting none of the revealed messages show administration figures to be surprised or hesitant to use Signal to discuss the matter. Others said it could explain why prior public records requests were met with claims there were no relevant files on hand.

Raskin described the Weaponization Working Group as operating within a “dark wall of secrecy” as it carries out politically-motivated prosecutions, accusing Martin of “seeing to it that even the most basic records of your activities will never see the light of day.” 

“This deliberate evasion of relevant rules of record retention appears to be part of an effort to conceal the Weaponization Working Group’s activities and your own conduct,” he wrote.

This story was updated at 1:25 p.m.