by WorldTribune Staff, February 16, 2024
An FBI informant who alleged that Joe Biden was involved in a criminal bribery scheme has been indicted by the special prosecutor investigating Hunter Biden.
Special Counsel David C. Weiss announced Thursday he is charging Alexander Smirnov with two counts of lying to the FBI about Hunter Biden and Joe Biden. Smirnov had alleged that Biden and his son received bribes from Ukrainian energy firm Burisma.
Smirnov was a paid FBI source who had been frequently used since the Obama administration and was deemed to be “highly credible.” FBI Director Christopher Wray long withheld Smirnov’s allegations from congressional investigators.
Now, Weiss is claiming that the longtime confidential human source for the FBI “provided false and derogatory information,” to the bureau.
Smirnov, 43, was arrested Thursday at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas upon return from a foreign trip. He faces up to 25 years in prison on the charges.
“In short, the Defendant transformed his routine and unextraordinary business contacts with Burisma in 2017 and later into bribery allegations against [Joe Biden], the presumptive nominee of one of the two major political parties for President, after expressing bias against [Joe Biden] and his candidacy,” Weiss alleged.
In the indictment, filed Thursday in the Central District of California, Weiss alleges that Smirnov gave false information about the Bidens to the FBI which were recorded in the 2020 FD-1023. Smirnov was approached by his handler after a request from the Pittsburg FBI office, which was seeking to gather more information on the allegations against Biden. The indictment also alleges that Smirnov expressed bias towards Joe Biden to his handler.
When asked on the “Just the News, No Noise” TV show, Arizona Republican Rep. Andy Bigg urged caution in drawing conclusions: “We don’t even know what Weiss may or may not have. I will just tell you this. An indictment means very little. It is the conviction that means the most.”
One commenter on social media noted: “The FBI whistleblower who exposed Biden Family corruption in Ukraine was just CHARGED by David Weiss, the man ‘investigating’ Hunter Biden. Instead of charging Hunter Biden for trafficking women or corruption abroad — He charged the man who risked his life to expose it all. Let that sink in. It has never been more clear — Joe Biden has weaponized the justice system against his adversaries. Challenge the regime and they will destroy you. It’s what they are doing to the FBI whistleblower. It’s what they are doing to J6ers. It’s what they are doing to Donald Trump.”
Lawmakers now conducting an impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden have focused on witness testimony from Hunter Biden’s former business partners as well as bank records in their efforts to show Joe Biden played a role in helping his family secure more than $20 million in foreign business deals.
“To be clear, the impeachment inquiry is not reliant on [Smirnov]. It is based on a large record of evidence, including bank records and witness testimony, revealing that Joe Biden knew of and participated in his family’s business dealings,” Rep. James Comer, Kentucky Republican and House Oversight and Accountability Committee chairman, said in a statement provided to The Washington Times.
Weiss has charged Hunter Biden with three felonies related to purchasing a gun while a drug addict and with three felonies and six misdemeanors involving nonpayment of taxes and falsification of tax forms.
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