Mar-a-Lago manager latest Trump staffer in legal turmoil

NEW YORK — A longtime Mar-a-Lago staffer who spent years fetching luxury cars for wealthy club members is the latest person to be ensnared in former President Donald Trump ‘s ballooning legal troubles.

Carlos De Oliveira appeared in court Monday to face charges connected to what prosecutors allege was a scheme directed by the former president and current GOP frontrunner to try to erase security footage after it was subpoenaed by a grand jury. De Oliveira is also charged with lying to investigators, according to a new indictment unveiled last week.

De Oliveira is now the second little-known Trump employee charged in connection to his alleged hoarding of classified documents at his Palm Beach, Florida, club. His case highlights the collateral damage of Trump’s mounting legal woes, as he leaves a trail of co-conspirators and allies accused of lying or committing other crimes on his behalf. Some of those finding themselves under legal scrutiny depend on Trump for their livelihood — and now to pay their mounting legal bills.

Trump has adamantly denied any wrongdoing and accused President Joe Biden’s Justice Department of targeting him to damage his campaign.

“They’re trying to intimidate people so that people go out and make up lies about me. Because I did nothing wrong,” he told conservative radio host John Fredericks last week. “But these are two wonderful employees. They’ve been with me for a long time and they’re great people. And they want to destroy their lives.”

The White House has repeatedly denied any suggestion that Biden has sought to influence investigations related to Trump.

De Oliveira’s appearance Monday marked not only the public’s first glimpse of Trump’s co-defendant, but an introduction for many who frequent the club. Unlike Nauta, who is a constant presence by Trump’s side, even current and former Trump staffers and allies said after the indictment was unsealed they were unfamiliar with De Oliveira and didn’t recognize his name. Several asked whether a reporter might have a photograph to help jog their memories.

Mar-a-Lago is staffed by more than 150 workers, from full-time staff to seasonal employees, and many were among those called to appear before the grand jury, according to people familiar with the appearances, who, like others, spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the case. They are just some of the dozens of staff, aides, public officials and attorneys who have been caught up in overlapping investigations into the documents as well as Trump’s efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

De Oliveira, according to the indictment and public records, has worked at Mar-a-Lago for more than 20 years, beginning as a valet who earned just $12,000 in 2010. He was promoted to the club’s property manager in January 2022.

One club member who requested anonymity to talk about staff described De Oliveira as a friendly face who ran the valet parking operation. The club member said it was hard to imagine Trump having any kind of lengthy conversations with someone in his position, as the indictment alleges. Others, however, noted Trump has a tendency to talk to everyone, including staff, and pays very close attention to his properties, pointing out issues like chipped paint, and directing maintenance workers to quickly attend to them

Trump also has a longtime pattern of elevating low-level staffers, building intense loyalty in the process. They pointed to people like Dan Scavino, a former golf caddy who became one of Trump’s most trusted aides, serving as a White House deputy chief of staff for communications and one of the few people entrusted to issue tweets under his name.

While those who have been elevated by Trump are among his most loyal defenders, others who have turned against the former president described a pattern of young staffers and low-level employees becoming enthralled with Trump and the trappings of power — first at the White House, with its rides aboard Air Force One, and now at Mar-a-Lago where dues-paying members burst into applause every time he enters a room. Trump, they say, has a knack for making people feel like they are special, and, from some, earns blind loyalty in return.

Stephanie Grisham, a onetime press secretary and aide to the former first lady, who is now a vocal Trump critic, said she was initially enamored by it all.

“I used to be in awe of that very thing,” she said. “He makes you feel important.”

De Oliveira and his attorney, John Irving, didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment and nobody answered the door at the home he rents in a working-class suburban community close to the highway between Jupiter and West Palm Beach. In 2012, records show, he filed for bankruptcy.

“The Justice Department has unfortunately decided to bring these charges against Mr. De Oliveira,” Irving said after the court appearance Monday. “They don’t stop to put their money where their mouth is. I am looking forward to seeing what discovery is.”

——— Associated Press writers Adriana Gomez Licon in Miami and Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, and Eric Tucker in Washington contributed to this report.