After an investigation of nearly five years, Hunter Biden has reached a plea agreement with federal prosecutors on two tax matters and one gun crime—but President Joe Biden’s son would avoid any jail time under the deal.
Under the proposal, which still has to be approved by a federal judge, the younger Biden would reportedly get two years’ probation.
The Republican congressman who is leading an investigation into the president and his family called the plea deal more evidence of the Justice Department’s “two-tiered system of justice.”
Hunter Biden, 53, reportedly didn’t pay income taxes for the years 2017 and 2018, and has an outstanding tax bill of $1.2 million. He also lied on a gun purchasing form by denying his use of illegal drugs.
A letter Tuesday from Delaware U.S. Attorney David Weiss to U.S. District Court Clerk Keith Kincaid says that the enclosed documentation “charges the defendant with tax offenses—namely, two counts of willful failure to pay federal income tax. … The defendant has agreed to plead guilty to two counts of the tax information.”
Weiss, initially appointed by then-President Donald Trump with the endorsement of Delaware’s two Democratic U.S. senators, began investigating Biden’s son in 2018.
“The second information charges the defendant with a firearm offense—namely, one count of possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance. … The defendant has agreed to enter a Pretrial Diversion Agreement with respect to the firearm information.”
Hunter Biden reached the deal with prosecutors as Congress intensifies its investigation of the Biden family’s financial dealings. Of particular interest to Republican lawmakers is an FBI informant who alleged that an executive with the Ukraine energy company Burisma paid a $5 million bribe to Joe Biden while he was vice president and Obama administration pointman for Ukraine, and a separate $5 million to Hunter Biden.
“Let’s be clear: The Department of Justice’s charges against President Biden’s son Hunter reveal a two-tiered system of justice,” House Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., who is leading the congressional probe, said in a public statement Tuesday.
Comer added:
Hunter Biden is getting away with a slap on the wrist when growing evidence uncovered by the House Oversight Committee reveals the Bidens engaged in a pattern of corruption, influence peddling, and possibly bribery. These charges against Hunter Biden and sweetheart plea deal have no impact on the Oversight Committee’s investigation. We will not rest until the full extent of President Biden’s involvement in the family’s schemes are revealed.
White House spokesman Ian Sams issued a short statement to media that minimally addressed the development in the Hunter Biden case.
“The President and First Lady love their son and support him as he continues to rebuild his life. We will have no further comment,” Sams said.
This story was updated to include a statement from White House spokesman Ian Sams.
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