FBI finds 48 empty classified document folders in Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate

The detailed list of items retrieved from former president Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate was released Friday, revealing FBI agents found 48 empty folders that had previously contained classified documents, reports The Washington Post.

The empty folders raise the question of "whether the government had fully recovered the documents or any remain missing," writes The New York Times.

The inventory list, unsealed by the Justice Department, shows that the FBI retrieved 43 empty folders with classified markings, alongside 28 empty folders labeled "return to staff secretary or military aide," per the Post. The agents also discovered 18 documents labeled as "top secret" within Trump's office and storage room.

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"Though the inventory does not describe the content of the documents, it shows the extent to which classified information — including material at the top-secret level — was stashed in boxes at the home," writes The Associated Press.

The Justice Department said it reviewed the records and had "segregated those with classified markings," following protocol and procedure, reports AP.

"The seized materials will continue to be used to further the government's investigation, and the investigative team will continue to use and evaluate the seized materials as it takes further investigative steps, such as through additional witness interviews and grand jury practice," said the Justice Department.

It is unclear why the folders were empty, what documents were inside, or where any missing contents might be.