Current:Home > StocksEx-FBI informant charged with lying about Bidens had Russian intelligence contacts, prosecutors say -NextFrontier Finance
Ex-FBI informant charged with lying about Bidens had Russian intelligence contacts, prosecutors say
View
Date:2025-04-12 19:45:05
LAS VEGAS (AP) — A former FBI informant charged with making up a multimillion-dollar bribery scheme involving President Joe Biden, his son Hunter and a Ukrainian energy company had contacts with officials affiliated with Russian intelligence, prosecutors said in a court paper Tuesday.
Prosecutors revealed the alleged contact as they urged a judge to keep Alexander Smirnov behind bars while he awaits trial. He’s charged with falsely reporting to the FBI in June 2020 that executives associated with the Ukrainian energy company Burisma paid Hunter and Joe Biden $5 million each in 2015 or 2016. The claim has been central to the Republican impeachment inquiry in Congress.
Smirnov is due in court later Tuesday in Las Vegas. He has been in custody at a facility in rural Pahrump, about an hour drive west of Las Vegas, since his arrest last week at the airport while returning from overseas.
Defense attorneys David Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld said in a statement ahead of the hearing that they were asking for Smirnov’s release while he awaits trial “so he can effectively fight the power of the government.”
Prosecutors said that during an interview before his arrest last week, Smirnov admitted that “officials associated with Russian intelligence were involved in passing a story” about Hunter Biden. They said Smirnov’s contacts with Russian officials were recent and extensive, and said Smirnov had planned to meet with one official during an upcoming overseas trip.
They said Smirnov has had numerous contacts with a person he described as the “son of a former high-ranking government official” and “someone with ties to a particular Russian intelligence service.” They said there is a serious risk that Smirnov could flee overseas to avoid facing trial.
The White House didn’t immediately comment on the claims in Tuesday’s court filing.
Prosecutors say Smirnov, who holds dual U.S.-Israeli citizenship, falsely reported to the FBI in June 2020 that executives associated with the Ukrainian energy company Burisma paid Hunter and Joe Biden $5 million each in 2015 or 2016.
Smirnov in fact had only routine business dealings with the company starting in 2017 and made the bribery allegations after he “expressed bias” against Joe Biden while he was a presidential candidate, prosecutors said in court documents. He is charged with making a false statement and creating a false and fictitious record. The charges were filed in Los Angeles, where he lived for 16 years before relocating to Las Vegas two years ago.
Smirnov’s claims have been central to the Republican effort in Congress to investigate the president and his family, and helped spark what is now a House impeachment inquiry into Biden. Democrats called for an end to the probe after the indictment came down last week, while Republicans distanced the inquiry from Smirnov’s claims and said they would continue to “follow the facts.”
Hunter Biden is expected to give a deposition next week.
The Burisma allegations became a flashpoint in Congress as Republicans pursuing investigations of President Biden and his family demanded the FBI release the unredacted form documenting the allegations. They acknowledged they couldn’t confirm if the allegations were true.
veryGood! (5)
Related
- Sam Taylor
- Prime-time headache for NFL? Aaron Rodgers' injury leaves league's schedule in tough spot
- Maluma on dreaming big
- Senators clash with US prisons chief over transparency, seek fixes for problem-plagued agency
- Can Bill Belichick turn North Carolina into a winner? At 72, he's chasing one last high
- German prosecutor files murder charges against Syrian citizen accused of ‘Islamist-motivated’ attack
- What a crop of upcoming IPOs from Birkenstock to Instacart tells us about the economy
- Olivia Rodrigo announces 57 dates for Guts World Tour: Where she's performing in 2024
- Clay Aiken's son Parker, 15, makes his TV debut, looks like his father's twin
- Bryan Kohberger, suspect in murders of 4 Idaho college students, wants cameras banned from the courtroom
Ranking
- Mega Millions winning numbers for August 6 drawing: Jackpot climbs to $398 million
- Santos misses extended deadline to file financial disclosure, blames fear of a ‘rushed job’
- On the road again: Commuting makes a comeback as employers try to put pandemic in the rearview
- Pablo Picasso painting that depicts his mistress expected to sell for $120 million at auction
- Selena Gomez engaged to Benny Blanco after 1 year together: 'Forever begins now'
- Pope Francis and Bill Clinton set discussion on climate change at Clinton Global Initiative
- New England has been roiled by wild weather including a likely tornado. Next up is Hurricane Lee
- Atlanta Braves lock up sixth straight NL East title
Recommendation
Everything Simone Biles did at the Paris Olympics was amplified. She thrived in the spotlight
A crane has collapsed at a China bridge construction project, killing 6 people
Judge in documents case lays out rules for Trump's access to classified information in lead-up to trial
Argentina shuts down a publisher that sold books praising the Nazis. One person has been arrested
Elon Musk’s Daughter Vivian Calls Him “Absolutely Pathetic” and a “Serial Adulterer”
Israel’s finance minister now governs the West Bank. Critics see steps toward permanent control
Paintings on pesos illustrate Argentina’s currency and inflation woes
DeSantis calls NAACP's warning about Florida to minorities and LGBTQ people a stunt