An IRS investigator is offering to provide Congress with evidence that the Biden Justice Department has pulled punches in an investigation into Hunter Biden’s taxes for political reasons, and that Attorney General Merrick Garland gave misleading testimony to Congress about the probe.
The career IRS criminal supervisory special agent is seeking whistleblower protections to share the information with Congress, his attorney told a bipartisan group of lawmakers Wednesday in a letter reviewed by the Washington Free Beacon. The attorney, Mark Lytle, did not specify the subject of the complaint, but sources say it relates to a tax investigation of Hunter Biden. The U.S. attorney’s office in Delaware has since 2018 investigated the scandal-plagued first son over unpaid taxes, his foreign business activities, foreign lobbying activities, and a gun incident that took place near his home in Wilmington.
Lytle said his client, who oversees the investigation, has information that will "contradict sworn testimony to Congress by a senior political appointee" and shows "clear conflicts of interest" in the handling of the probe. The special agent also has evidence of "preferential treatment and politics improperly infecting" decisions in the investigation.
The allegations are sure to spark a firestorm on Capitol Hill, and could raise questions about whether the administration has interfered in investigations of Hunter Biden’s business activities, which have involved other members of the Biden family. The allegations could also pose problems for Garland, who is said to be the senior political appointee mentioned in Lytle’s letter.
Garland told the Senate Judiciary Committee on March 1 that U.S. Attorney David Weiss, who is leading the Biden probe, has "not heard anything to suggest that they are not able to do everything the U.S. attorney wants to do."
The whistleblower has already provided information to the IRS, the Justice Department inspector general, and the Treasury Department inspector general, Lytle said.
CNN reported after the midterm elections that prosecutors were close to a decision on whether to file charges related to Biden’s taxes and the gun incident, which involves whether Biden lied about his drug and alcohol use on a form to purchase a firearm.
That report was a disappointment to conservatives who believe Biden should be charged over his business and lobbying dealings. Congressional Republicans have zeroed in on Biden’s work for CEFC China Energy, an energy conglomerate with ties to Chinese intelligence. The firm paid Biden at least $6 million for consulting and legal services.
A businessman involved in Hunter Biden’s dealings with CEFC China Energy has said he met with Hunter and Joe Biden to discuss the issue in California in 2017. Tony Bobulinski, the businessman, has also said that Joe Biden is referred to as "the big guy" in an email discussing an equity stake in their Chinese business venture. That contradicts the president’s repeated claim that he was not involved in his son’s business affairs.