WASHINGTON – Los Angeles U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada told lawmakers he refused to “partner” with federal prosecutors in Delaware last year to charge his first son, Hunter Biden, with tax fraud, saying his office I was simply too “under-resourced” to assign anyone to the task. case.
Estrada, appointed by President Biden, confirmed that he was reluctant to accuse his boss’s son of evading taxes related to foreign income in Tuesday testimony before the House Judiciary Committee, according to a transcript reviewed by The Post, which which partially confirms the claims of the IRS whistleblowers.
D.C. U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves, another Biden appointee, also recently confirmed to the panel that he rejected Delaware U.S. Attorney David Weiss’ request to join in bringing charges, with Graves saying it would have been too difficult for his office. “catch up”. throughout.”
Estrada told the Judiciary Committee, which is working on an impeachment inquiry into the president, that he believes his predecessor granted some of Weiss’s subordinates special assistant U.S. attorney status in Los Angeles, meaning they could have been able to prosecute Hunter Biden without your help.
However, Estrada could not say how many had been so designated – he only recalled “more than one” – or what role they may have played.
Federal Prosecutor Martin Estrada says he did not have enough resources to charge Hunter Biden.MediaNews Group via Getty Images Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to two misdemeanor tax crimes in July.Getty Images
According to Estrada, Weiss called him on October 19, 2022 to request that the Los Angeles prosecutor work directly with the Delaware team.
“My goal was to be as polite and helpful as possible to Mr. Weiss,” Estrada recalled of the phone call.
“At that time I had a loss of 40 AUSA, so we were very limited in resources. We were trying to hire as many as possible and we had very limited resources. And every lawyer you assign to a case means you can’t take on another case,” Estrada said.
“And it seemed, and he didn’t back down, when I told him the situation, that we wouldn’t be advising, but he expressed gratitude when I offered administrative support.”
Estrada told lawmakers he did not remember how many of David Weiss’s subordinates had been assigned to handle the case. Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
Weiss reportedly considered not pressing charges against Hunter Biden, now 53, after Graves and Estrada rejected his requests, then changed his mind when IRS supervising agent Gary Shapley and case agent Joseph Ziegler , came forward this year to allege irregularities in the investigation.
Shapley and Ziegler said Weiss was not the final decision-maker in the case, contrary to Attorney General Merrick Garland’s sworn statements to Congress, and claimed they had also been prohibited from fully accessing the evidence or investigating apparent links. of President Biden with his son’s foreign income, even when the communications directly implicated him.
Weiss approved a probation-only deal for Hunter Biden on tax and gun charges last June. The deal collapsed dramatically at a court hearing on July 26, and Garland granted Weiss special counsel powers on August 11.
Weiss in June approved a probation deal for Biden on tax and gun charges. Paul Morigi
Weiss last month charged Hunter Biden in Delaware with three felonies related to illegal gun possession, but has yet to refile tax charges, which could also include related charges such as money laundering and alleged violations of the US Act. Registry of Foreign Agents.
The financial crimes would be charged in Los Angeles or DC because that is where Hunter Biden was living and filing his taxes when he allegedly scammed Uncle Sam out of $2.2 million between 2014 and 2019.
Republican-led House committees are conducting an impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden’s alleged role in his son and brother’s foreign ventures. As vice president and before winning the presidency, Biden regularly interacted with his family’s benefactors (including those from China, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Russia and Ukraine) in what critics call corrupt influence peddling.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn