The Biden Justice Department on Monday unsealed charges against an Israeli-American think tank official who provided the FBI with information in 2019 about the Biden family’s business dealings with China.
Federal prosecutors in Manhattan accused Gal Luft of covertly working for China and attempting to facilitate arms sales to Iran, Libya, and Qatar. Luft, the co-director of the Maryland-based Institute for the Analysis of Global Security, was arrested in Cyprus on Feb. 17, but skipped bail while facing extradition to the United States. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams and Justice Department assistant attorney general for national security Matthew Olsen, both Biden appointees, announced the charges against Luft.
Luft said after his arrest earlier this year that the Justice Department was targeting him because he provided information about the Bidens to the FBI and Justice Department in 2019.
"DOJ is trying to bury me to protect Joe, Jim & Hunter Biden," said Luft, who met with FBI agents and Justice Department officials in Brussels.
Luft’s allegations come as IRS whistleblowers accuse the Justice Department of stymying an investigation into Hunter Biden’s foreign business dealings. Hunter Biden entered a plea deal with federal prosecutors on misdemeanor tax charges for failure to pay taxes in 2017 and 2018. IRS whistleblower Gary Shapley, who worked on the investigation, said his team was prevented from fully investigating the sources of Hunter Biden’s income. Shapley also said that the FBI had national security concerns about Hunter Biden’s ties to CEFC China Energy, a Chinese energy conglomerate with extensive ties to Luft.
The Washington Free Beacon reported in March that Luft worked closely with CEFC China Energy, which gave his think tank $350,000 in grants. CEFC paid Hunter Biden at least $6 million in 2017 and 2018. The firm, which has suspected ties to Chinese military intelligence, gave Hunter Biden at least $5 million for business consulting, and another $1 million to provide legal services to Patrick Ho, a CEFC executive who was indicted for trying to bribe two African officials for oil rights.
Both Hunter Biden and Luft worked closely with Ho, who was convicted on bribery charges. Hunter Biden referred to Ho as the "fucking spy master of China" in audio recordings in 2018. Luft submitted a letter of support for Ho at his federal trial. A former employee of Ho’s told the Free Beacon that he was frequently accompanied by Luft at CEFC’s offices in New York.
House Oversight Committee chairman James Comer (R., Ky.), who is investigating the Biden family’s business ventures, has sought interviews with Luft. He said last week he plans to ask the FBI for documents related to Luft’s interviews with the FBI, which were conducted in Brussels.
Prosecutors charged Luft with violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act and Arms Export Control Act. They allege he violated the foreign agent law by commissioning articles in Chinese state media from a former U.S. government official.
While the official is not identified in the indictment, Luft recently said that he paid former CIA director James Woolsey to write opinion articles for China Daily. Woolsey was a founder of Luft’s think tank and spoke at numerous events with Patrick Ho, the CEFC China Energy executive.