- A judge has shut down Mike Lindell's attempt to get his cell phone back from the FBI.
- In the Thursday ruling, the judge also rejected Lindell's request to access an affidavit.
A federal judge shut down MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell's attempt to get his phone back from the FBI last week.
Lindell had his phone seized by the FBI at a fast-food restaurant in Minnesota earlier this year. The action was taken in connection with an inquiry into pro-Trump election official, Tina Peters.
Politico reported the story on Thursday after obtaining court documents. On Thursday, the US District Court judge Eric Tostrud also rejected Lindell's request to access the affidavit that justified the seizure.
Tostrud, who is based in Minnesota, ruled that the government had "demonstrated a compelling interest in the ongoing criminal investigation" that outweighed Lindell's right of access, per the court documents obtained by Politico.
The judge also said there would be no practical way to provide a redacted version of the documents to Lindell, per Politico.
Peters has been accused of facilitating an election-data leak that was presented at a conference hosted by Lindell in August last year.
In September, Lindell sued the FBI and DOJ for seizing his phone, claiming they had violated his "First, Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendment" rights, according to a copy of the lawsuit obtained by Insider.
He also demanded that his cell phone be returned and that any information obtained from his phone was not released.
Representatives for Lindell did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment made outside normal working hours.
Lindell is a longtime ally of former US president Donald Trump. He has promoted and backed his discredited claims over widespread fraud in the 2020 election.