Ex-FBI informant pleads guilty to Biden bribery claims
Former FBI informant Alexander Smirnov has made a plea deal with investigators and admitted to lying about US President Joe Biden and his son Hunter receiving bribes from the Ukrainian owner of Burisma, according to a Thursday court filing.
Smirnov was arrested in February and charged by a special council, which was investigating Hunter Biden, with making a false statement and creating a fictitious record in his report on the dealings of the son of the current president. The would-be informant was also accused of failing to pay taxes on over $2 million in income for 2020 through 2022.
Previously, Smirnov, 43, had reported to FBI agents that Hunter and Joe Biden had received $5 million each from Burisma Holdings for “protection” while Biden Sr. was serving as US vice president and his son held a paid position on the firm’s board. He also claimed that during his time as vice president, Biden had pressured Kiev to fire Ukrainian Prosecutor Viktor Shokin, who was investigating the company.
On Friday, it was reported that Smirnov had pled guilty to four charges, including tax evasion and obstruction of justice, for providing false information to the FBI. US media outlets noted that the plea deal will likely put an end to the investigation into Hunter Biden.
Both Joe Biden and his son have repeatedly denied Smirnov’s accusations, while federal prosecutors have argued that the FBI informant’s claims were “fabrications.”
Last month, despite repeatedly saying he would not do it, the US president also officially pardoned his son of all crimes committed since 2014, claiming that his prosecution was unfair and instigated by his political opponents. Hunter had previously been convicted of tax evasion and illegally purchasing a firearm.
Meanwhile, a number of other documents and witness testimonies have also suggested that Burisma had appointed Hunter Biden to its board in order to influence US policy and shield itself from prosecution in Ukraine.
Hunter’s former business partner, Devon Archer, had previously testified to the Republican-led House Oversight Committee that the outgoing president’s son had personally asked his father to disrupt the investigation into Burisma. He also claimed that Joe Biden had taken the money in exchange for orchestrating prosecutor Shokin’s dismissal.
Joe Biden has publicly admitted to being responsible for Shokin’s firing but has denied taking bribes. He has also denied having knowledge of his son’s foreign business dealings, despite documents found on Hunter’s laptop suggesting that the then-vice president was repeatedly in contact with both his son and his business associates.
