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Authorities in Fulton County are expecting Donald Trump to surrender for his arrest over Georgia election interference allegations sometime Thursday evening.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has imposed flight restrictions around the area above the Fulton County Jail, where the former president is due to appear for processing, from 6:45 p.m. Eastern Time to 9:00 p.m. on Thursday.
As noted by WTOC reporter Shea Schrader on X, formerly Twitter, the reason for the airspace closure around the the jail is because of "VIP movement."
On Thursday afternoon, Trump posted to his Truth Social platform to confirm that he would be arrested in Georgia at 7:30 p.m.
"I have to start getting ready to head down to Atlanta, Georgia, where Murder and other Violent Crimes have reached levels never seen before, to get ARRESTED by a Radical Left, Lowlife District Attorney, Fani Willis, for A PERFECT PHONE CALL, and having the audacity to challenge a RIGGED & STOLEN ELECTION. THE EVIDENCE IS IRREFUTABLE! ARREST TIME: 7:30 P.M.," the former president wrote in a post shared shortly before 3:00 p.m.
Trump, who previously said he would "proudly" hand himself in on Thursday, is accused of 13 offenses under Fulton County DA Fani Willis' election interference investigation, including violation of the state's RICO Act, solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer, and conspiracy to commit forgery. The former president has long denied all wrongdoings in connection to Willis' probe.
Willis had previously given Trump and the 18 other suspects indicted in her inquiry into alleged criminal attempts to overturn the 2020 election results a deadline of noon on Friday, August 25, to hand themselves in.
Several of Trump's co-defendants, including former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and ex-attorneys for the former president John Eastman, Sidney Powell and Jenna Ellis, have already surrendered and had gone through the booking process, including having their mugshots taken.
Just like the other suspects, Trump will also have his mugshot taken after he surrenders for arrest, the first time he has had a booking photo taken in any of the four criminal investigations the former president has been charged under.
"Unless somebody tells me differently, we are following our normal practices, and so it doesn't matter your status, we'll have a mugshot ready for you," Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat previously confirmed.
Trump also had a bond imposed for the first time in the Fulton County case, with Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee setting the amount at $200,000. McAfee also told Trump not to intimidate any potential witness in the case or "otherwise obstruct the administration of justice." Trump was also ordered by a judge not to make any threats against people involved in the case on social media.
In an earlier post on Truth Social, Trump mocked the idea that a person with as big a profile as he him needed a bond.
"The failed District Attorney of Fulton County (Atlanta), Fani Willis, insisted on a $200,000 Bond from me. I assume, therefore, that she thought I was a 'flight' risk—I'd fly far away, maybe to Russia, Russia, Russia, share a gold domed suite with Vladimir, never to be seen or heard from again," Trump wrote.
"Would I be able to take my very 'understated' airplane with the gold TRUMP affixed for all to see. Probably not, I'd be much better off flying commercial—I'm sure nobody would recognize me!"
Update, 8/24/2023 at 3:09 p.m. ET: A Truth Social post from Trump was added.
About the writer
Ewan Palmer is a Newsweek News Reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on US politics, and Florida ... Read more