The U.S. Department of Justice logo is displayed prior to a news conference on Monday, May 4, 2026, in Washington.

WASHINGTON – A former federal prosecutor in Florida has been indicted for allegedly sending a sealed special counsel report to her personal email. This report stemmed from the investigation into President Donald Trump’s handling of classified documents.

Carmen Lineberger, previously with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, faces charges of theft of government property and concealment of government records. She pleaded not guilty in a court appearance in West Palm Beach. Her attorney has not returned requests for comment.

Prosecutors claim that last December, Lineberger emailed herself the report prepared by special counsel Jack Smith. The document detailed the investigation into Trump keeping top-secret documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate. At that time, a court order prohibited Justice Department employees from sharing the report.

The indictment states that Lineberger allegedly disguised the report’s file name to “Bundt_Cake_Recipe.pdf” before saving and emailing it with a matching subject line. She also allegedly sent internal Justice Department materials to her personal email under the file name “Chocolate_cake_recipe.pdf.” These materials included official-use-only messages and memoranda.

The indictment does not clarify why Lineberger sought to transfer the report, which she could access as a prosecutor, to her personal email. The report detailing Smith’s investigation, once believed to pose a legal threat to Trump, remains unseen by the public. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon supported Trump’s lawyers in keeping it sealed after the case was dropped following Trump’s 2024 election win.

Lineberger operated within the same judicial district where Trump’s case was filed. This case accused Trump of unlawfully retaining classified records at Mar-a-Lago and obstructing efforts to retrieve them.

FBI Director Kash Patel stated, “This FBI will not hesitate to bring to account those who violated the trust of the American public in an investigation that should’ve never been brought to begin with,” in a statement posted online.