Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, has been indicted on nine criminal charges in connection with a long-running Justice Department investigation into his taxes.
This marks the second criminal case brought against Hunter Biden by special counsel David Weiss, who lodged gun charges in Delaware in mid-September.
The president’s son was charged by a grand jury in California with nine counts of failing to file and pay taxes, tax evasion, and filing false tax returns; three of the charges are felonies, and another six are misdemeanors.
Prosecutors accuse Hunter Biden of failing to pay at least $1.4 million in federal taxes from 2016 through 2019.
According to the 56-page indictment, Hunter Biden earned more than $7 million in gross income between 2016 and 2020 from foreign business deals, including payments for his service on the board of the Ukrainian natural gas company Burisma and his work for a Chinese energy conglomerate.
He also received another $1.2 million in 2020 and spent the money to fund an “extravagant lifestyle,” including drugs, escorts and girlfriends, exotic cars and clothing, the indictment alleges.
The charges, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, span nine counts and include:
- Three felony counts:
- Failure to file and pay taxes.
- Evasion of assessment.
- False or fraudulent tax return.
- Six misdemeanor counts:
- Failure to file a true and accurate tax return.
- Failure to pay over federal income tax.
- Failure to collect and pay employment taxes.
- False statement on a loan application.
- International money laundering.
According to the special counsel’s team, Biden engaged in a four-year scheme to avoid paying at least $1.4 million in taxes owed between 2016 and 2019.
While Biden eventually paid his taxes for 2018, prosecutors allege he included false business deductions to reduce his tax liabilities.
The 56-page indictment further alleges that Biden “subverted the payroll and tax withholding process of his own company” by withdrawing millions of dollars outside of the regular payroll system, thereby avoiding tax withholding.
This indictment comes as the Justice Department continues its investigation into Biden’s business dealings, including his work with foreign companies.