The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Delaware is investigating Hunter Biden’s “tax affairs,” President-elect Joe Biden’s son confirmed Wednesday, saying he is taking the matter “very seriously” and is “confident” he handled his affairs “legally and appropriately.”
“I learned yesterday for the first time that the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Delaware advised my legal counsel, also yesterday, that they are investigating my tax affairs,” Hunter Biden said in a statement. “I take this matter very seriously but I am confident that a professional and objective review of these matters will demonstrate that I handled my affairs legally and appropriately, including with the benefit of professional tax advisors.”
The investigation, according to a source familiar with the matter, began in 2018.
In a separate statement, the Biden-Harris Transition team said: “President-elect Biden is deeply proud of his son, who has fought through difficult challenges, including the vicious personal attacks recent months, only to emerge stronger.”
In October, Fox News first reported that the FBI subpoenaed a laptop and hard drive purportedly belonging to Hunter Biden in connection with a money-laundering investigation in late-2019.
It is unclear, at this point, whether the subpoenas came as part of the U.S. Attorney in Delaware’s investigation into Biden’s tax affairs. It is also unclear whether the FBI money-laundering investigation was ongoing or directly related to Hunter Biden.
One of the documents, obtained by Fox News, was designated as an FBI “Receipt for Property” form, which details the bureau’s interactions with John Paul Mac Isaac, the owner of “The Mac Shop” who reported the laptop’s contents to authorities.
The document had a “Case ID” section, which was filled in with a hand-written number: 272D-BA-3065729.
According to multiple officials and the FBI’s website, “272” is the bureau’s classification for money laundering, while “272D” refers to “Money Laundering, Unknown SUA [Specified Unlawful Activity]—White Collar Crime Program,” according to FBI documents. One government official described “272D” as “transnational or blanket.”
“BA” indicated the case was opened in the FBI’s Baltimore field office, sources said.
The documents stated that the subpoena was carried out in Wilmington, Del., which would fall under the jurisdiction of the FBI’s Baltimore Field Office.
Another document, obtained by Fox News, was a subpoena sent to Isaac to testify before U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware on Dec. 9, 2019. One page of the subpoena showed what appeared to be serial numbers for a laptop and hard drive taken into possession.
The subpoena stated that it was requested by Lesley F. Wolf, who, at the time, served as assistant U.S. attorney for the district of Delaware.
Fox News also first reported in October that the FBI was in possession of the laptop in question.
The FBI has declined to confirm or deny the existence of an investigation into the laptop or the emails, as is standard practice.
The Justice Department declined to comment on the investigation into Biden’s tax affairs.
(Fox News).
