GOP Rep. Scott Perry says FBI seized his cellphone

Aug. 10 (UPI) -- Republican Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania said FBI agents have seized his cellphone.

Perry said in a statement released by his office that he was traveling with his family Tuesday morning when three FBI agents took his communication device.

"They made no attempt to contact my lawyer, who would have made arrangements for them to have my phone if that was their wish," he said. "I'm outraged -- though not surprised -- that the FBI, under the direction of Merrick Garland's [Department of Justice], would seize the phone of a sitting member of Congress."

The reason for the seizure was unclear but it comes as Perry continues to refuse to comply with a subpoena to testify in front of the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, siege of the Capitol building.

Perry, a staunch ally of former President Donald Trump, has been accused of being involved in efforts to overturn Joe Biden's election win, which culminated in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.

Amid its investigation, the House select committee has received evidence that Perry was present for a Dec. 21, 2020, meeting with other GOP lawmakers at the White House where they deliberated ways to keep Trump in power following his election defeat to Biden.

A deposition of Cassidy Hutchinson, a former aide to then-White House chief of state Mark Meadows, accuses Perry of voicing support during the meeting for sending people to the Capitol on Jan. 6.

The Pennsylvanian Republican is also accused of being instrumental to a plan to replace then-Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen with Jeffrey Clark, then-acting head of the Justice Department's civil division and a supporter of Trump's false claims that the general election was stolen.

Perry did not say why his cellphone was taken by likened it to the raid of Trump's Florida home a night prior when FBI agents carried out a court-authorized search of the Mar-a-Lago residence in relation to an investigation into the potential mishandling of classified documents.

"My phone contains info about my legislative and political activities and personal/private discussions with my wife, family, constituents and friends," Perry said. "As with President Trump last night, DOJ chose this unnecessary and aggressive action instead of simply contacting my attorneys."

The seizure comes after federal investigators in late June searched Clarks' home as part of an investigation into the Justice Department's efforts to overturn the 2020 election.