THREAD: Why did Mueller use search warrants to obtain information for five phones this year as part of its ongoing investigation of Paul Manafort?
Renato Mariotti added,
Brad HeathVerified account @bradheath
Here's a partial list of the warrants that DOJ filed as an exhibit tonight. They're all still sealed.
 Renato Mariotti?Verified account @renato_mariotti Apr 5
1/ As @bradheath of @USATODAY noted in the tweet quoted above, today Mueller disclosed the existence of a number of search warrants tonight in its ongoing investigation of Manafort (and others), including a search warrant for information relating to five AT&T phones.
2/ The search warrant itself is still sealed, so right now all we know is that the search warrant was obtained. Nonetheless, the fact that Mueller obtained the search warrant tells us a number of things about his investigation.
3/ Mueller would not need a search warrant to obtain subscriber data or records of the calls made to and from the phones. He would also not need a search warrant to obtain billing information for the phones. He could obtain all of that information using a subpoena.
4/ This warrant likely means that Mueller obtained what is called "historical cell site information" for those five phones. The U.S. Supreme Court is currently considering whether a search warrant is needed to obtain historical cell site information, so obtaining one makes sense.
5/ Historical cell site information is a list of the cell towers that a particular cell phone communicated with when a call was made. For the vast majority of cell towers, it also indicates which side of the cell tower the phone was communicating with.
6/ This information can be used by law enforcement to obtain a rough sense of where the phone was located at a particular time. For example, if my phone connected to a cell tower in downtown Chicago at 7pm, it indicates that I was somewhere in that vicinity at that time.
7/ Historical cell site information does not tell you the location of a phone in between phone calls, and it doesn't tell you where the phone was located in the future. But it can be very important evidence whenever the location of a person is important in proving a crime.
8/ For example, I used historical cell site information as evidence to prove the guilt of the Bogdanov family when they traveled around the country stealing millions of dollars in merchandise from retail stores. Mr. Bogdanov's phone always seemed to be located near the thefts.
9/ Historical cell site information is less useful in most white collar cases. For example, if I'm trying to prove that an executive laundered money, all the phone location information would show me is that he is at his office. What matters is not where he's located.
10/ That's why this move by Mueller is interesting. It indicates that it's important to Mueller to know where the owners of the phones were located at particular times. For example, the location information could be used to show that the phones were in the same place at one time.
11/ We don't know who the five phones belong to. They could belong to Manafort and Gates. But the fact that Mueller obtained this information is that he's interested in the whereabouts of the owners of these phones at particular times.
12/ It suggests that the location of the people Mueller is investigating matters to him. That could be due to trips overseas or because individuals meeting each other will back up the testimony of one of his cooperators. But it certainly offers a window in what he's doing, /end
New conversation
?? Bill ??? @trump_in_prison Apr 5
Replying to @renato_mariotti
Hmmm....I wonder if Cohen's phone was in Prague. Cohen showed a picture of his passport cover saying he had never been to the Czech Republic. I pointed out to him that travel around Schengen does not require a stamp for entry between countries. He then blocked me on Twitter
Horizon? @addisskins Apr 5
Replying to @renato_mariotti
Gates is singing and Mueller is taking notes! Anyone else feel like this is heating up at a faster pace in the last 2 weeks??
J? @MsEnergyHealer Apr 5
Replying to @renato_mariotti
I mean Manafort decided to go yachting in Europe w/Tom Barrack right after resigning & we know there were suspicious bank activity reports filed during the time of trip. Dreeben is arguing that case before the Supreme Court so makes sense that they'd get warrants for tower info. |
