Hunter Biden to plead guilty to federal tax and gun crime charges
US President Joe Biden’s son Hunter has agreed to plead guilty to two counts of failure to pay federal income tax and illegally owning a firearm.
US President Joe Biden’s son Hunter has pleaded guilty to two counts of wilful failure to pay federal income tax, prosecutors said on Tuesday, local time.
Hunter Biden, in a plea agreement with the US Attorney’s Office in his home state of Delaware, also acknowledged possessing a firearm despite being a drug user.
The agreement between the 53-year-old Biden and US prosecutors will still need to be approved by a federal judge.
The charges come at the conclusion of a five-year investigation into the US president’s son that has focused on money he received from overseas business interests.
Prosecutors were widely expected to bring charges in the politicised case after the Washington Post reported federal investigators believed they had evidence to charge Biden in the probe that began in 2018 as an investigation into his overseas business dealings.
Hunter Biden announced soon after his father won the 2020 presidential election that his “tax affairs” were under investigation by the Delaware US Attorney’s Office, led by David Weiss.
In October 2020, a further controversy emerged involving data from a laptop that belonged to Hunter Biden that was abandoned at a Delaware computer shop in 2019.
On the laptop were emails referring to international business interests of the Bidens as well as photos of Hunter Biden naked, and surrounded by drug paraphernalia.
The White House issued a statement via a spokesperson on the charges: “The President and First Lady love their son and support him as he continues to rebuild his life. We will have no further comment.”
According to the charges, Mr Biden, a lawyer and lobbyist, failed to file his tax returns on time on earnings of more than US$1.5 million for 2017 and 2018.
In both years he owed more than US$100,000 (A$148,000) in taxes on those earnings.
Each count brings up to 12 months in prison and a fine of up to $100,000 or double what he stood to gain by breaking the law.
Mr Weiss said Hunter Biden was also facing one count of “possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.”
He has admitted to struggles with crack cocaine and other drugs in the past.
He will not be prosecuted on the gun charge but will enter what is known as “pretrial diversion,” which often involves counselling or rehabilitation.
In a statement, Christopher Clark, Hunter Biden’s lawyer, said “Hunter will take responsibility for two instances of misdemeanour failure to file tax payments when due.
“I know Hunter believes it is important to take responsibility for these mistakes he made during a period of turmoil and addiction in his life,” Mr Clark said. “He looks forward to continuing his recovery and moving forward.”
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