By Dennis Romero and Jesse Rodriguez -
NBC News
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg tried to reassure his staff in an internal message Saturday that intimidation or threats against them would not be tolerated.
The communication comes as his office advances its investigation into former President Donald Trump, who said he believes he will be arrested Tuesday and called on his supporters to protest.
“Please know that your safety is our top priority,” Bragg said in a memo to office staff obtained by Noticias Telemundo's sister network NBC News from a senior official in the Manhattan prosecutor's office.
[Law Enforcement Prepares Security Plan in Case Trump Faces Criminal Charges Over Payments to Stormy Daniels]
And it added: "We do not tolerate attempts to intimidate our office or threaten the rule of law in New York."
The letter, which was first reported by Politico, did not mention Trump by name, referring only to "an ongoing investigation by this office."
Trump is under investigation by Bragg's office in connection with a hush money payment made to adult video performer Stormy Daniels during his first campaign for president.
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In a post on his Truth Social social media site on Saturday, Trump addressed reports that he could face possible criminal charges in the investigation and said he believes he will be arrested Tuesday.
[Trump's Republican allies wrap up the former president in the face of a possible criminal charge against him]
Trump, who is running for president again, implored his supporters to protest.
“WE MUST SAVE AMERICA!
PROTEST, PROTEST, PROTEST!!!”, he said on Truth Social.
A Trump spokesperson later said there had been no notification other than the "illegal leaks" from the Justice Department and "the prosecutor's office."
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg participates in a news conference in New York, Tuesday, February 7, 2023. Seth Wenig / AP
Bragg's email did not go into detail about possible threats to the office, but stated that law enforcement "will ensure that any specific or credible threat against the office is fully investigated and appropriate safeguards are in place."
His office did not immediately respond to a request for comment late Saturday.
NBC News reported Friday that law enforcement agencies are preparing for a possible impeachment of Trump as soon as next week.
[Build 10 new cities and other Trump proposals in his campaign to return to the presidency]
Former Trump attorney Michael Cohen is a key witness in the case and testified before the grand jury this week.
Cohen pleaded guilty in federal court in 2018 to a federal charge related to making the payment to Daniels.
He was sentenced to three years in federal prison for that and other crimes.
Cohen maintains that the payment was made at the behest of Trump and that it was for the "primary purpose of influencing" the 2016 presidential election. Daniels has said the two had a sexual relationship in 2006. The payment was for a confidentiality agreement, he said. Trump.
Trump said the payment was legal and that he reimbursed Cohen.
Trump tweeted in 2018 that the money was "not from the campaign" and that the deal had been "a private contract between two parties, known as a non-disclosure agreement, or NDA."
Trump has denied any wrongdoing and has called the investigation a continuation of a partisan "witch hunt" against him.