Walsh Seeks Documents in Justice Dept. Probe

WASHINGTON —  Independent counsel Lawrence E. Walsh is requesting thousands of pages of documents pertaining to Justice Department investigative efforts in both the Iran arms sales and diversion of funds to the contras , two Administration officials said Tuesday night.

The written request from Walsh was made within the last two weeks. A number of Justice Department personnel have spent days collecting investigative files, phone message slips, private notebooks and other internal records for immediate turnover to the independent counsel’s office, said the officials, who requested anonymity.

Much of the request for the records focuses on last November’s fact-finding inquiry by Atty. Gen. Edwin Meese III into the Iran arms sales, which led to the discovery that money had been diverted to the contras, the officials said.