Rudy Giuliani describes raid on his Manhattan home as ‘illegal and unconstitutional’

Rudy Giuliani has claimed that the search warrant authorizing the raid on his Manhattan home was ‘illegal’ and ‘unconstitutional’, claiming that he had offered to hand over his electronic devices willingly for the past two years, and insisting that he had never worked for a foreign national.

Giuliani’s home was surrounded by FBI agents at 6am on Wednesday morning, as part of an investigation into his dealings in Ukraine.

Giuliani, the former US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and former mayor of NYC, told Fox News host Tucker Carlson on Thursday night that there was no legal justification for the raid. 

‘The only way you can get a search warrant is if you can get that evidence someone will destroy evidence,’ said Giuliani.

Rudy Giuliani on Thursday night appeared on Fox News to discuss the raid on his home 

Giuliani's apartment was raided on Wednesday: the media is seen waiting outside

Giuliani’s apartment was raided on Wednesday: the media is seen waiting outside

He said that he had been offering his electronic devices for two years, and claimed that the government had ‘spied on me’ before, through the Cloud. 

‘I could have destroyed the evidence years ago. I didn’t destroy the evidence because the evidence is exculpatory. It proves that the the president and I are innocent,’ he said. 

They seized ‘eight electronic devices of mine and two of someone else’s,’ he said. 

‘There is no justification for that warrant,’ Giuliani continued.

‘It’s an illegal, unconstitutional warrant.’ 

The warrants included an allegation that Giuliani failed to register as a foreign agent, a violation of lobbying laws.

Prior to the 2020 presidential election, Giuliani led an effort to dig up dirt on then-Democratic contender Joe Biden and his son Hunter in Ukraine.

Rudy Giuliani's Upper East Side home was raided at 6am on Wednesday

Rudy Giuliani’s Upper East Side home was raided at 6am on Wednesday

Giuliani insisted on Carlson’s show that he had never worked for any foreign nationals, and had a line in all his contracts insisting he would only work for U.S. citizens.

‘I never, ever represented a foreign national,’ said Giuliani, who founded management consultancy and security firm Giuliani Partners in 2002, on stepping down as mayor.

Giuliani accused agents of ignoring Hunter Biden's hard drives during their search - hard drives which contained the image above

Giuliani accused agents of ignoring Hunter Biden’s hard drives during their search – hard drives which contained the image above

‘I have in my contracts that I didn’t want to,’ he said. 

He worked on behalf of a wide range of foreign clients, from the Qatari government in 2007, for whom he acted as a security consultant, to a $4.3 million security contract with Mexico City, advising them on their policing and public safety.

Giuliani said that investigators would not tell him what exactly they were looking in to.

‘They won’t explain what they are looking into for the last two years,’ he said.

‘They won’t address it. They say come in and discuss your entire life.’

And he expressed bemusement that the ‘very professional’ agents were not interested in taking Hunter Biden’s hard drive with them. 

‘I said don’t you want these?’ Giuliani recalled.

‘They said what are they? I said they are Hunter Biden’s hard drives.’

The agents said they did not want them. 

‘I said, are you sure? One last time. They said no.’

Giuliani said that Hunter Biden’s hard drives ‘fall in the scope of the subpoena’.

He said the hard drive contained evidence of ’30 years of the Biden crime family’. 

Giuliani added: ‘They were also completely content to rely on my word. They could have been Donald Trump’s. They could have been Vladimir Putin’s.’

Giuliani concluded: ‘I am so offended by the things they have said about me.’ 

Earlier on Thursday, Giuliani had told a caller to his radio show that he was outraged at the raid, and described those behind it as ‘crooks’ jealous of his career. 

‘I’ve been fighting crooks all my life,’ he said. 

Giuliani, seen at a Trump rally on January 6, ahead of the riot, had his home raided Wednesday

Giuliani, seen at a Trump rally on January 6, ahead of the riot, had his home raided Wednesday

Giuliani pictured in June 1987, when he was U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York

Giuliani pictured in June 1987, when he was U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York

Giuliani made his name in the 1980s taking down the mob (pictured, with FBI Director William Webster)

Giuliani made his name in the 1980s taking down the mob (pictured, with FBI Director William Webster)

‘I’m fighting crooks again. The only tragedy of it is they have titles from the government. 

‘But they’re a disgrace! They are a complete disgrace to the office that I distinguished! They didn’t.’

Giuliani then detailed his illustrious career, telling how he expelled ‘five Nazis’ from the United States and talking about his infamous mob-busting years in the 1980s, when he brought down the ‘Five Families’ – New York’s main mafia clans. 

‘Did they get threatened with getting killed by the mafia? The Colombian cartel wanting to cut my throat?

‘What have they done? Noting except come after me, six-o-clock in the morning, with a piece of nonsense. No wonder they’re jealous!

‘It’s just ridiculous.’

The comments are Giuliani’s first on the raid, aside from a written statement released via his lawyer on Wednesday.

 

Federal investigators executed a search warrant Wednesday on Rudy Giuliani's New York City apartment and office, seizing electronic devices

Federal investigators executed a search warrant Wednesday on Rudy Giuliani’s New York City apartment and office, seizing electronic devices

Rudy Giuliani's apartment building on the Upper East Side of Manhattan

Rudy Giuliani’s apartment building on the Upper East Side of Manhattan

Rudy Giuliani's Park Avenue office was also raided by federal investigators

Rudy Giuliani’s Park Avenue office was also raided by federal investigators

Giuliani arrives at the Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in 2016

Giuliani arrives at the Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in 2016 

Donald Trump on Thursday slammed the FBI raid on ‘patriot’ Giuliani‘s Manhattan apartment, saying it is ‘very unfair’. 

The former president spoke out to defend his former personal attorney, telling Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo: ‘Rudy Giuliani is a great patriot. He just loves this country, and they raid his apartment.

Michael Cohen: Giuliani is an ‘idiot’ who will turn on Trump – and Trump will not hesitate to ‘throw him under the bus’

Michael Cohen has said Rudy Giuliani ‘would give Donald Trump up in a heartbeat’ after federal agents raided the former New York City mayor’s home and office. 

Speaking to CNN Thursday, Trump’s former fixer called Giuliani an ‘idiot’ who has ‘no relationship’ with the ex president, who, he says, operates in a ‘garbage can orbit’.  

Federal agents raided the 76-year-old’s apartment Wednesday, taking with them his electronic devices including computers and cellphones.    

After news of the raid broke Wednesday, Cohen – who was also subject of a federal raid and would eventually plead guilty to eight federal counts – tweeted: ‘Here we go folks.’

He said Thursday: ‘He’s [Giuliani] nervous and rightfully so. Rudy will give up Donald in a heartbeat. Donald will throw anyone and everyone under the bus.

‘Rudy has been shady for a long time.  

‘We have no idea how expansive this investigation is going to ultimately reveal itself, because Rudy’s an idiot. And that’s the problem. 

‘Rudy drinks too much. Rudy behaves in such an erratic manner, that, who knows what’s on those telephones or what’s on his computers?’

Cohen was convicted in 2018 of campaign finance violations while working as Trump’s personal attorney – he was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to nine charges. 

Less than a year after his sentencing, Cohen was released from Otisville Correctional Facility in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic on compassionate grounds. 

He has been confined to his Trump Park Avenue apartment in Lenox Hill ever since July 2020.

‘It’s like so unfair and…it’s like a double standard like I don’t think anybody’s ever seen before. It’s very, very unfair. Rudy is a patriot who loves this country.’ 

Joe Biden later said he found out about the raid ‘when the rest of the world learned about it’, adding: ‘I had no idea this was underway.’

The raid signals a major escalation of the Justice Department’s investigation into any possible violation of federal lobbying laws and the business dealings of Giuliani.  

Giuliani, once celebrated for his handling of the 9/11 terror attacks while New York City mayor, has been under federal scrutiny for several years over his ties to Ukraine. The dual searches sent the strongest signal yet that he could eventually face federal charges. 

Giuliani’s lawyer Robert Costello said the warrants involved an allegation that Giuliani failed to register as a foreign agent and that investigative documents mentioned John Solomon, a frequent Fox News commentator with close ties to Giuliani. 

Solomon pushed baseless or unsubstantiated allegations involving Ukraine and Biden during the 2020 election. His former employer, The Hill, published a review last year of some of his columns and determined they were lacking in context and missing key disclosures.         

Trump said on Thursday: ‘I don’t know what they’re looking for or what they’re doing.

‘They say it had to do with filings of various papers and lobbying files. Well, did Hunter [Biden] file? Did [President] Biden file? Because they did a lot of work with other countries. To the best of everyone’s knowledge, they didn’t file.

‘It’s a very, very unfair situation.’ 

He added: ‘It is so terrible when you see the things going on in our country with the corruption and the problems and then they go after Rudy Giuliani. It’s very said, actually.’  

He ended the interview by telling Bartiromo: ‘You’re going after the Rudy Giuliani’s of the world when you have rapists and murderers coming in through the border.’ 

The raid may have been spurred by a voicemail where the former mayor of New York City hinted at having a burner phone.

Federal investigators may have been alerted over a November 2019 message Giuliani left his ex associate Lev Parnas in November 2019.

Giuliani is said to have been recorded saying: ‘Joe, it’s Rudy Giuliani.

‘I’m calling, uh, to see if we can talk either about or with Lev. I have my lawyer with me, but you can call me back at [REDACTED]. That’s [REDACTED].’

Giuliani then adds: ‘That’s the soon to be gotten rid of number.’

Joseph Bondy, the attorney for Parnas, filed a motion in court in December that included a transcript of the voicemail message that the ex-mayor left him.

A link of the transcript was found on Wednesday by Newsweek.