DOD ‘Wiped’ Phones of Senior Trump Officials—Jan. 6 Communications No Longer Accessible

A file image of the U.S. Department of Defense seal is seen on the lectern in the media briefing room at the Pentagon in Washington on Dec. 12, 2013. Paul J. Richards/AFP/Getty Images

Some senior Trump administration officials had their phones “wiped” by the Department of Defense (DOD) and the U.S. Army after the former president left office, meaning messages that were sent around the time of the Jan. 6 Capitol breach are no longer accessible, court filings show.

The DOD acknowledged that the phones belonging to former Pentagon officials had been wiped as part of a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit filed by American Oversight, a non-profit watchdog organization.