Washington, D.C.: Hunter Biden, son of US President Joe Biden, is facing legal troubles as he was indicted on Thursday on charges related to his purchase of a Colt revolver in Delaware five years ago. The indictment includes two counts of making false statements for falsely claiming on forms that he was not using illegal drugs at the time of the purchase.
In addition to the false statements charges, a third charge alleges that, based on these false statements, Hunter Biden illegally possessed the firearm, a charge that could potentially lead to a prison sentence of up to 10 years.
These charges were filed by Justice Department Special Counsel David Weiss, who has been conducting an investigation into Hunter Biden since 2018. The indictment comes two months after a plea deal between Biden and Weiss, which encompassed the gun charge and alleged tax violations, unraveled due to differences regarding the possibility of additional charges against the president’s son.
Under the initial plea agreement reached in July, Hunter Biden had agreed to plead guilty to two minor tax charges. In return, he was offered probation, as he had already settled his tax liabilities along with associated penalties. The agreement also stipulated that the felony gun charge would be suspended if Biden completed a “pretrial diversion” program, often involving counseling or rehabilitation.
However, the deal fell apart during a dramatic July 26 hearing due to disputes over whether Biden would be immune from other potential charges, including those related to his business dealings in Ukraine, China, and other countries. The possibility of Biden facing charges for acting as a lobbyist for foreign governments without registering with the Justice Department was raised during the hearing.
Three weeks after the initial deal collapsed, Weiss dropped the tax charges and indicated that new charges would be brought in other states. He also informed the Delaware court that an indictment on the gun charge would be forthcoming by the end of September.
Hunter Biden’s legal challenges, at the age of 53, have cast a shadow over his father’s reelection campaign. Although Republicans have accused Biden’s Justice Department of favoritism and Special Counsel David Weiss, a Republican appointee, of leniency towards Hunter, no evidence supporting these claims has been presented.
Source AFP
