Federal agents likely to charge Hunter Biden on tax and gun purchase crimes

Investigators believe younger Biden made false statement on paperwork to purchase gun

Federal agents believe they have sufficient evidence to charge Hunter Biden with tax crimes and making false statements to purchase a firearm, The Washington Post reports.

The Post reported on Thursday that investigators probing the activities of Joe Biden’s son believe they had gathered enough evidence some several months ago, and that the decision now rests in the hands of local US attorneys.

Former president Donald Trump nominated Delaware’s US Attorney David Weiss, who will now have the final decision regarding whether to file formal charges against the son of the sitting president.

Mr Trump frequently mentioned the president’s son and allegations against him during the 2020 presidential campaign, but Thursday’s news concerns charges not related to the laptop recovered by conservative operatives which they allege contains evidence of crimes committed during his business in Ukraine and other countries.

The House of Representatives impeached Mr Trump after his phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asking him to investigate Hunter Biden and his father in 2019. The Senate later acquitted him.

The Post could not confirm whether the laptop helped the Justice Department in its investigation.

According to the Post, the original investigation into Mr Biden, which began roughly four years ago, once centred around many of the allegations that Mr Trump and his allies frequently raise. But over time, it began to focus more on whether the president’s son had properly reported all of his overseas income as well as whether the younger Biden has lied on 2018 paperwork filled out during the process of purchasing a firearm.

It’s the latest embarrassing headline for Joe Biden focused on his son, which even if it does not evolve into a formal criminal trial, adds to the air of criminality that has surrounded his troubled offspring for years.

In addition to the latest drama, Mr Biden’s son has long battled an addiction with crack cocaine, a substance that would lead to potential prison time if he was ever caught with it thanks to legislation his father supported in the 1990s, and which he has appeared with in numerous photographs. The whole situation has led to somewhat justified arguments that the president’s son has been treated with kid gloves by law enforcement compared to average Americans who would face serious consequences for such drug use.

While Mr Biden himself is also not on the ballot next month, it could present a new headache for Democrats in tough races around the country as they seek to respond to GOP attacks. House Republicans have pledged that if they win back the majority that they will investigate the president’s son.

Chris Clark, a lawyer for Hunter Biden accused investigators of leaking information about the probe.

“It is a federal felony for a federal agent to leak information about a Grand Jury investigation such as this one,” he said in a written statement.

“Any agent you cite as a source in your article apparently has committed such a felony. We expect the Department of Justice will diligently investigate and prosecute such bad actors. As is proper and legally required, we believe the prosecutors in this case are diligently and thoroughly weighing not just evidence provided by agents, but also all the other witnesses in this case, including witnesses for the defense. That is the job of the prosecutors. They should not be pressured, rushed, or criticized for doing their job.”

Mr Clark said that he had. “had no contact whatsoever with any federal investigative agent. Therefore, a rendition of the case from such an ‘agent’ is inherently biased, one-sided, and inaccurate. It is regrettable that law enforcement agents appear to be violating the law to prejudice a case against a person who is a target simply because of his family name”