A former federal prosecutor in Florida has been accused of illegally sending himself confidential Justice Department records related to special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into Donald Trump.
Carmen Mercedes Linebarger, 62, faces two felony charges in connection with her handling of Volume II of Smith’s final report, which examined allegations that Trump and two associates mishandled classified documents after his first presidency.
Prosecutors allege Linebarger emailed the confidential files to his personal accounts, disguised as dessert recipes.
According to court filings, she allegedly sent the report to her Hotmail account with the subject line “Chocolate Cake Recipe”, later forwarding it to a Gmail account under the file name “Bundt_Cake_Recipe.pdf.”
Linebarger is also charged with two misdemeanor counts of theft of government property valued under $1,000.
He pleaded innocent on Wednesday and was not detained after his arrest. His lawyer declined to comment.
The report was blocked from public release in 2025 by federal Judge Aileen Cannon, who argued that it was “not customary” for prosecutors to release findings from a dismissed case.
Linebarger worked in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida for nearly two decades before retiring in December.
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