The State Department had 17 Freedom of Information Act requests for Hillary Clinton's correspondence in 2013 but neglected to officially request that Clinton provide her missing emails until the following year.
According to documents obtained and released by Judicial Watch, Clinton's emails were a hot-ticket item two years before it was made public that the former secretary of state used a private email address and server. Four of the 17 FOIA requests sought Clinton's emails.
Judicial Watch made public 113 pages of documents Thursday.
In one email chain, someone named Margaret Grafeld wrote to Sheryl Walter and John Hackett: "… Finally, John, you mentioned yesterday requests for Secretary Clinton's emails; may I get copies, pls and thx."
Grafeld, noted Judicial Watch, was the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Global Information Services. Walter worked as the State Department director, Office of Information Programs and Services/Global Information Services, while Hackett was the Deputy Director, Office of Information Programs and Services.
The email was then sent around and forwarded several times, with State Department employees trying to find out more about Clinton's missing emails.
"These new emails suggest that the Obama State Department knew about the Clinton email problem at least three years but covered it up," Judicial Watch president Tom Fitton said. "Any criminal investigation of the Clinton email scandal must include officials in the Obama administration."
Earlier this summer, the FBI recommended that Clinton not be charged for mishandling classified information despite the fact that classified material was found on her server in emails that were both saved and deleted.