A former FBI informant admitted to fabricating a bribery scheme, on Monday, involving President Joe Biden and his son Hunter, which has been a focal point of the Republican-led impeachment inquiry in Congress.
Alexander Smirnov pleaded guilty to a felony charge related to the false narrative, in addition to a separate charge of tax evasion for concealing millions in income. Smirnov’s attorney declined to comment following the hearing in a federal court in Los Angeles.
Both prosecution and defence have agreed to recommend a prison sentence of four to six years when Smirnov is sentenced next month. He will receive credit for the time served since his arrest in February for alleging that Ukrainian energy company Burisma had paid $5 million each to President Biden and Hunter Biden around 2015.
According to prosecutors, Smirnov had been an informant for over a decade when he made the allegations against the Bidens in June 2020, showing bias against Joe Biden as a presidential candidate.
However, court documents indicate that Smirnov’s involvement with Burisma began only in 2017. An FBI field office investigated and recommended closing the case in August 2020 due to lack of evidence.
There is no evidence that Joe Biden acted corruptly or accepted bribes during his presidency or his tenure as vice president.
Although Smirnov’s identity was not publicly known before the indictment, his claims significantly influenced the Republican congressional investigation into the Biden family, contributing to the House impeachment inquiry. Prior to Smirnov’s arrest, Republicans had urged the FBI to release the unredacted document of the unverified allegations, despite their inability to confirm the truth of the claims.
In a September 2023 interview with investigators, Smirnov also alleged that Russians likely had recordings of Hunter Biden, claiming that a hotel in Ukraine’s capital where Hunter had supposedly stayed was under Russian surveillance. However, the indictment states that Hunter Biden had never visited Ukraine.
Smirnov asserted connections with Russian intelligence officials, alleging that these officials were involved in disseminating the story about Hunter Biden.
The case against Smirnov was brought by special counsel David Weiss, who also prosecuted Hunter Biden on gun and tax charges. Hunter Biden was scheduled for sentencing this month following his conviction in the gun case and guilty plea in the tax case. However, he was recently pardoned by his father, President Joe Biden, who cited “raw politics” and a “miscarriage of justice” as reasons for the pardon.
Frances Ibiefo
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