The US president’s son accepted money from a Romanian businessman facing corruption charges, according to prosecutors.
Federal prosecutors in the criminal tax case against Hunter Biden have accused him of accepting payments from a Romanian businessman who allegedly sought to “influence US government agencies.”
According to a filing made by the Justice Department on Wednesday in a Los Angeles federal court, a Romanian national hired Biden for legal work in 2015. His father Joe Biden was vice-president under then-President Barack Obama at the time.
The filing reportedly did not name the Romanian businessman but only identified him by his initials as “G.P.”
US media outlets have identified him as Gabriel Popoviciu, who was facing corruption charges in Romania at the time. The businessman was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2017 after being convicted of real-estate fraud. He denied any wrongdoing.
In the Wednesday filing, prosecutors said they had evidence that Hunter Biden and an associate had “received compensation from a foreign principal who was attempting to influence US policy and public opinion” and to end the local investigation against him in Romania.
According to prosecutors, Biden and his associate “were concerned that lobbying work might cause political ramifications for the defendant’s father” Joe Biden and acted to cover up the “true nature” of the work.
Hunter Biden and two associates split over $3 million in payments from Popoviciu, prosecutors say.
According to the Associated Press, Biden’s lawyers said in court papers that the president’s son is “the target of politically motivated attacks and conspiracy theories” about his foreign business dealings, and pointed to the fact that he has not been charged with any crime related to the allegations and the Special Counsel “should thus be precluded from even raising such issues at trial.”
The latest accusations form part of a broader case against the younger Biden, who was charged last year with evading $1.4 million in taxes between 2016 and 2019 and using the money to live an “extravagant lifestyle.” Biden has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The trial in the case is scheduled for September in California. Biden was earlier found guilty on three charges in a federal gun trial in Delaware. Prosecutors in that case argued that Joe Biden’s son lied on a mandatory gun-purchase form in 2018 by claiming he was not addicted to or illegally using drugs.
Hunter Biden could face up to 25 years behind bars. However, experts have predicted that as a first-time offender he is unlikely to receive such a harsh sentence and may avoid prison entirely.
The 54-year-old is the first son or daughter of a serving US head of state to have criminal charges brought against him.
