Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, is facing a federal tax trial next month in Los Angeles over at least $1.4 million in taxes he owed between 2016 and 2019. However, his lawyers are accusing prosecutors of trying to insert politically-charged allegations about his foreign business dealings into the trial. Special counsel David Weiss’ team plans to call a business associate of Hunter Biden’s to testify about an arrangement with a Romanian businessman who was trying to influence U.S. government policy during Joe Biden’s term as vice president. Hunter Biden’s lawyers argue that such matters are irrelevant to the case and could confuse jurors.
The defense team claims that the prosecutors’ decision to bring in evidence of the arrangement with the Romanian businessman is unnecessary and only serves to echo baseless and false allegations of foreign wrongdoing. They argue that these allegations are being used as a political tool by House Republicans to attack Hunter Biden and his father. Prosecutors, on the other hand, believe that this evidence is essential to rebut the defense’s argument that Hunter Biden’s drug use during the years in question affected his decision-making and judgement. They claim that the evidence shows Hunter Biden’s actions do not reflect someone with diminished capacity.
According to prosecutors, the Romanian businessman, Gabriel Popoviciu, wanted U.S. government agencies to investigate a bribery investigation he was facing in Romania. They allege that Hunter Biden agreed to help Popoviciu fight the criminal charges against him, but the arrangement was structured in a way to conceal the true nature of the work. The prosecutors claim that Hunter Biden and his business associate were paid for their work to influence U.S. government agencies to investigate the Romanian investigation. This arrangement resulted in Hunter Biden’s business associate receiving over $3 million, which was split with Hunter and another business partner.
The tax trial comes on the heels of Hunter Biden being convicted of three felony gun charges related to the purchase of a gun in 2018. He was found guilty of lying on a mandatory gun-purchase form by stating he was not illegally using or addicted to drugs. The upcoming tax trial is likely to further scrutinize Hunter Biden’s business dealings and raise questions about potential conflicts of interest or improper influence related to his father’s position as vice president. Both sides are gearing up for a contentious trial next month as they continue to argue over what evidence should be allowed and what is relevant to the case. The outcome of the trial could have significant implications for Hunter Biden and his family, as well as for the political landscape in Washington.
