FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. (WSVN) - Surveillance video is providing a new view of the pre-dawn raid at the Fort Lauderdale home of longtime Donald Trump confidant Roger Stone.
Decked out in tactical gear and with guns drawn, FBI agents could be seen in the security footage approaching the front door of Stone’s residence, Jan. 25.
Thursday night, Stone walked a 7News crew through the moments he was shaken out of bed by federal agents.
“I heard a pounding on the door. That’s all I heard, was the pounding,” he said. “I didn’t know if somebody had an accident or whether it was a nut or what the issue was.”
Stone has been accused of lying to Congress, obstruction and witness tampering in the FBI’s Russia probe.
He reenacted the moment FBI agents took him into custody and placed him in handcuffs.
“‘Keep your hands above your head.’ I did. They said, ‘We have a warrant for your arrest,'” said Stone. “‘Turn around, put your hands behind your back.’ I did. Then they said, ‘Are there any guns in the house?’ I said, ‘No.'”
The surveillance video backs up Stone’s account. It shows an agent banging on the door several times. When Stone eventually answered, he came out and raised his arms, turned around and was handcuffed.
Shortly after, he was led away. He was wearing a T-shirt that read, “Roger Stone did nothing wrong.”
“I just happened to be wearing it,” he said.
At the time, Stone was worried about his wife, who he said is nearly deaf.
“My concern was that they would think she wasn’t complying with an order, and she would get shot,” he said. “Fortunately, that didn’t happen.”
Another surveillance camera showed a boat filled with law enforcement on the waterway behind Stone’s home.
“The CIA truck pulled up about 40 minutes before the FBI, and they set up their tripod about seven minutes before the FBI arrived,” said Stone.
Stone was critical of the large presence outside his home, using the raid on Osama bin Laden as a partial comparison.
“I’ve only compared it in the sense that they sent 12 men after him, and they sent 29 people after me,” he said. “It’s just an unnecessary show of force. I mean, the government knows that I am represented. They know I have no previous criminal record. I’m really not a flight risk.”
Prosecutors moved to seal Stone’s indictment and keep it secret, believing any publicity prior to his arrest would increase the risk he would run or destroy evidence.
Not so, countered Stone.
“I have no valid passport. I don’t own a gun. I live on a canal, but I can’t really swim very well,” he said, “and the fact that the government released me on a surety bond indicates that they don’t really think that I’m a flight risk.”
Stone kept relatively quiet about the charges against him, saying he’s unable to speak about the case other than the fact that he pleaded not guilty. He did say he is certain he will be found innocent and vindicated.
On Friday morning, supporters stopped by to meet Stone when he came outside to speak with the media.
“It’s a 50-50 thing; half the people want to stab you, the other people want a selfie,” he said.
Stone once again wore a “Roger Stone did nothing wrong” shirt, as he discussed his current situation.
“When a person is falsely accused of something, if you don’t tell people you’re innocent, if you say, ‘Oh, I have no comment’ or ‘Mr. Stone was not available,’ people assume you’re guilty,” Stone said, “which is what I think the government wants.”
A federal judge addressed Stone’s openness and warned that he could soon face a gag order to prevent tainting a jury pool.
“I would argue that the raid on my house tainted a potential jury pool,” Stone rebutted. “I would argue that two years of insidious weeks from the Special Counsel’s Office have tainted the jury pool.”
Stone said a gag order would violate his First Amendment rights.
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