Former President Donald Trump claims in a social media post that he will be arrested next week.
The claim comes while a New York prosecutor considers charging Trump in connection with hush money paid to adult film actress Stormy Daniels but there has been no official announcement of any plans for an indictment.
Trump has been entangled in several criminal investigations but the case related to Daniels is the longest-running of them all, reaching back to 2016.
On his platform Truth Social on Saturday morning, Trump said that “illegal leaks” indicated that he will be arrested on Tuesday and he went on to call for protests.
Trump’s attorney, Susan Necheles, told NPR that Trump’s speculation is “based on media reports” and she condemned prosecutors for withholding information from Trump’s legal counsel.
“Since this is a political prosecution, the District Attorney’s office has engaged in a practice of leaking everything to the press, rather than communicating with President Trump’s attorneys as would be done in a normal case,” Necheles said in a statement.
Trump, who is running for president in 2024, also defended himself on Truth Social, asserting that he has not committed a crime — though he did not disclose what he expects to be charged with — and he accused the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office of being “corrupt & highly political.”
The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office declined to comment on whether it will soon be pursing an arrest warrant for Trump.
But the Associated Press reported that law enforcement officials in New York are discussing security preparations in anticipation that Trump may be indicted in coming weeks.
If it does occur, Trump would become the first former president to be indicted in U.S. history.
Despite Trump’s speculation of an arrest warrant, Steven Cheung, a spokesperson for Trump’s campaign, said the former president expects to appear in Texas next weekend for a rally.