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Hunter Biden has been indicted on nine charges over allegations that President Joe Biden's son failed to file and pay taxes, and of filing a false return.
The indictment against Hunter Biden, 53, was filed in California. It includes three felony counts of tax evasion and filing a false return and six misdemeanor counts of failure to return. The Department of Justice (DOJ) accused Hunter Biden of not paying at least $1.4 million in self-assessed federal taxes between 2016 and through 2019, and evading the assessment of taxes in 2018 when he filed false returns.
If convicted, Hunter Biden faces a maximum penalty of 17 years in prison. The DOJ noted in a news release that actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence if a conviction against Hunter Biden occurs after taking into account sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.
The indictment is the second one to be filed against Hunter Biden, putting further pressure on his father, the president, heading into the 2024 election. House Republicans also hope to launch impeachment hearings against 81-year-old Joe Biden over disputed accusations he benefited from and influenced his son's foreign business deals while in office.
In July, Hunter Biden was due to plead guilty to two tax-related misdemeanors, with a felony gun charge to be dropped as part of the deal. The proposal fell apart after it was scrutinized by a judge. Hunter Biden, who has a history of drug addiction, later pleaded not guilty in October in Delaware to charges of illegally possessing a firearm, despite knowing he was a drug user.
Federal prosecutors now accuse Hunter Biden of spending millions of dollars on an extravagant lifestyle rather than paying his tax bills down the years.
A 56-page indictment says that Hunter Biden spent $388,810 in business-related travel in 2018, despite having "done little to no business" in that year. Also, in 2018, Hunter Biden is said to have spent more than $1.8 million, including $772,000 in cash withdrawals, $383,000 in "payments to women," and $151,000 in clothing and accessories.
In total, Hunter Biden is accused of spending more than $4.9 million over a four-year period, including $683,212 on escorts and "various women," and $188,960 on adult entertainment, all while not paying his tax bills. Hunter Biden has since paid back the taxes he owed.
In a statement to CNN, Hunter Biden's attorney Abbe Lowell said that if "Hunter's last name was anything other than Biden," then the charges in Delaware and California would not have been brought. Newsweek has contacted Lowell and the White House by email for further comment.
"First, U.S. Attorney Weiss bowed to Republican pressure to file unprecedented and unconstitutional gun charges to renege on a non-prosecution resolution," Lowell said. "Now, after five years of investigating with no new evidence—and two years after Hunter paid his taxes in full—the U.S. Attorney has piled on nine new charges when he had agreed just months ago to resolve this matter with a pair of misdemeanors."
After the plea deal in July fell apart, U.S. Special Counsel Weiss, who was appointed a Delaware U.S. attorney by former president Donald Trump, indicted Hunter Biden on three felony firearm offenses in September.
Hunter Biden has pleaded not guilty to charges of making a false statement in the purchase of a firearm, making a false statement related to information required to be kept by Federal Firearms Licensed Dealer, and possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison in that case.
In a statement following the latest indictment in California, House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer accused the DOJ having "got caught in its attempt to give Hunter Biden an unprecedented sweetheart plea deal." Comer is among the House Republicans seeking to impeach President Biden.
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About the writer
Ewan Palmer is a Newsweek News Reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on US politics, and Florida ... Read more