Holly MatkinSuffolk County, NY – Alec Baldwin finally complied with a cell phone search warrant issued by a New Mexico judge last month.
A New Mexico judge signed a search warrant for Baldwin’s cell phone on Dec. 16, 2021, in connection with the ongoing investigation into the actor’s fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the movie “Rust” last October.
The affidavit filed by the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office (SFCSO) to get the warrant from the judge said that investigators had asked the actor to turn over his phone but were told they should “acquire a warrant,” CNN reported.
The New Mexico First Judicial District Attorney’s Office and the SFCSO said in a statement Jan. 6 that they are “actively working” with Baldwin’s attorneys and the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO) on Long Island to gather information from the actor’s phone, the New York Post reported.
Baldwin, 63, owns a home in Amagansett, according to the news outlet.
He finally turned the phone over to the SCSO on Jan. 14, SFCSO spokesperson Juan Rios told the Santa Fe New Mexican.
“The Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office does not yet have physical possession of the data,” Ríos said in a statement. “This is in process.”
The monthlong wait for Baldwin’s phone was allegedly due to a “jurisdictional concern,” a spokesperson for the Santa Fe District Attorney’s Office told the Santa Fe New Mexican.
“The phone was not in New Mexico and we needed to work with New York officials to execute the warrant,” the spokesperson wrote.
Baldwin’s attorney, Aaron Dyer, said his client did nothing wrong and claimed he has been cooperating with police since the fatal shooting, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported.
“Alec voluntarily provided his phone to the authorities this morning so they can finish their investigation,” Dyer said in a statement. “But this matter isn’t about his phone, and there are no answers on his phone.”
Dyer said investigators need to focus on how live ammunition wound up inside the firearm his client was holding.
“Alec did nothing wrong. It is clear that he was told it was a cold gun, and was following instructions when this tragic accident occurred,” he told the Santa Fe New Mexican. “The real question that needs to be answered is how live rounds got on the set in the first place.”
SFCSO investigators believe there are key conversations on Baldwin’s cell phone that are related to what led to the death of Hutchins on the movie set in October of 2021, the New York Post reported.
The warrant said that investigators were seeking messages, call logs, digital photos, and videos on Baldwin’s phone.
Investigators also want to see any private messages sent via social media platforms with regard to production of the movie, CNN reported.
The warrant said authorities were trying to find deleted videos, photos and messages that had something to do with “Rust.”
Investigators have found conversations regarding the production on Hutchins’ phone dating back to July 14, 2021, and told the judge that “gathering information prior to the film start date of Rust is essential for a full investigation,” the New York Post reported.
The search warrant affidavit said Baldwin and the film’s armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, exchanged emails about what type of gun to use in the scene, and “he said he requested a bigger gun.”
Baldwin ultimately chose a “period” Colt with a brown handle, the New York Post reported.
Gutierrez-Reed told investigators she checked the gun after Hutchins was shot, according to the affidavit.
“She checked the cartridge which would have been the one fired and said the first one she pulled out didn’t have ‘that’ (pointing to the projectile end of a bullet),” the search warrant read.
The affidavit said the other rounds in the chamber of the weapon were dummy rounds, the New York Post reported.
Gutierrez-Reed told police she “did not believe anyone on the film set would be that malicious” to bring live ammunition on to the movie set, according to the warrant.
Her attorney, Jason Bowles, told TMZ that “as time has gone on and our investigation continues to uncover suspicious and troubling facts pointing to sabotage, she wants this fully and completely investigated to uncover the full truth.”
Baldwin insisted during an interview with ABC News that he “didn’t pull the trigger” of the gun he was holding when it discharged and fatally shot Hutchins on the set of the “Rust” film.
“The trigger wasn’t pulled. I didn’t pull the trigger,” Baldwin said during the sit down. “I would never point a gun at anyone and pull the trigger at them. Never.”
The actor said he has “no idea” how the fatal incident occurred.
“Someone put a live bullet in a gun. A bullet that wasn’t even supposed to be on the property,” he said.
Baldwin, co-producer and star of the film, said his connection to the death of Hutchins, 42, and the wounding of director Joel Souza is the worst thing that’s ever happened to him.
“I think back and I think of what could I have done?” he said. “She was someone who was loved by everyone who worked with and liked by everyone who worked with and admired…I mean, even now, I find it hard to believe… It doesn’t seem real to me.”
