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FBI informant lied to investigators about Biden’s business dealings, special counsel alleges
Washington — The special counsel who is investigating the president’s son, Hunter Biden, charged a one-time FBI informant with lying to investigators about the business dealings of the first son and President Joe Biden.
Special counsel David Weiss charged Alexander Smirnov, 43, with making a false statement and creating a fictitious record in what’s known as an FBI 1023 report based on the false information he provided to investigators.
Smirnov was arrested at a Nevada airport on Wednesday, the Justice Department said.
According to a grand jury indictment unsealed in the Central District of California, Smirnov allegedly began speaking with his FBI handler in 2017 to discuss Burisma Holdings, Limited, a Ukrainian holding company that hired Hunter Biden to sit on its board.
It was not until June 2020, three years later, that Smirnov allegedly told the FBI about two meetings in 2015 or 2016 in which he said he was told that the company was paying Hunter Biden on serve on Burisma’s board to “protect us, through his dad, from all kinds of problems.” Later, Smirnov allegedly told investigators that “that they had specifically paid $5 million each to Public Official 1, when he was in office, and Businessperson 1 so that ‘[Businessperson 1] will take care of all those issues through his dad,” according to charging documents.
The indictment does not specifically identify President Biden nor his son by name, but the descriptions in court papers match their identities.
“The Defendant made these statements to the Handler in June 2020, when Public Official 1 was a candidate for President of the United States and the presumptive nominee of one of the two major political parties,” the indictment alleged.
Prosecutors alleged both statements, which were memorialized in an FBI record form, “were false, as the Defendant knew.”
“No such statements were made to the Defendant because, in truth and fact, Defendant met with officials from Burisma for the first time in 2017, after Public Official 1 left office in January 2017, and after the then-Ukrainian Prosecutor General had been fired in February 2016,” the special counsel said.
Smirnov continued to make his alleged false statements to federal investigators up until September 2023, when the indictment said he, “repeated some of his false claims, changed his story as to other of his claims, and promoted a new false narrative after he said he met with Russian officials.”
The special counsel accused Smirnov of “expressing a bias” against Mr. Biden in May 2020 text messages with his FBI handler, expressing a view that the then presidential candidate was “going to jail.”
The FBI 1023 that the special counsel alleges was based on Smirnov’s false information correlates with an investigative document that drew intense scrutiny from congressional Republicans over the last year because they alleged it pointed to alleged misdeeds by Mr. Biden and his son.
Weiss’ indictment appears to rebut that claim, alleging Smirnov “transformed his routine and unextraordinary business contacts with Burisma in 2017 and later into bribery allegations against Public Official 1, the presumptive nominee of one of the two major political parties for President, after expressing bias against Public Official 1 and his candidacy.”
An attorney for the defendant could not be immediately identified.
The president’s son has been charged with nine federal tax charges for what the special counsel alleges was a “four-year scheme” to avoid paying at least $1.4 million in federal taxes.
Weiss, who was appointed U.S. attorney for Delaware by former President Donald Trump and named special counsel by Attorney General Merrick Garland in 2023, charged Hunter Biden with three felony gun charges in the state of Delaware that are related to his alleged unlawful possession of a firearm.
He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Responding to Thursday’s charges, Hunter Biden’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, said in a statement, “”For months we have warned that Republicans have built their conspiracies about Hunter and his family on lies told by people with political agendas, not facts. We were right and the air is out of their balloon.”
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$100 million in federal funds released for North Carolina to rebuild roads, bridges damaged by Helene
Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Transportation released $100 million in emergency funds on Saturday for North Carolina to rebuild its roads and bridges damaged by Helene.
“We are providing this initial round of funding so there’s no delay getting roads repaired and reopened, and re-establishing critical routes,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a statement. “The Biden-Harris administration will be with North Carolina every step of the way, and today’s emergency funding to help get transportation networks back up and running safely will be followed by additional federal resources.”
The storm caused rampant flooding that has devastated several towns and killed more than 225 people – with CBS News confirming at least 114 people killed in North Carolina. There was more than 8 inches of rain across the western North Carolina mountains, with some areas seeing more than a foot.
Hundreds of roads across Western North Carolina remain closed, leading to an increase in air traffic as teams scour the region for survivors by air. Air traffic over Western North Carolina has increased by 300% due to relief efforts since the storm cleared, the Federal Aviation Administration and the North Carolina Department of Transportation.
Mudslides blocked Interstate 40 and other highways in North Carolina and about 400 roads were closed due to damage from Helene. Interstate 40 was damaged at several locations, the Department of Transportation said.
President Biden visited the Carolinas on Wednesday, surveying the flood damage by air from Greenville, South Carolina, to Asheville, North Carolina. Mr. Biden announced the federal government would cover “100%” of all debris removal and emergency protective measure costs in North Carolina for six months.
The Department of Transportation said these relief funds will allow the North Carolina Department of Transportation to act more quickly to fund eligible repairs to their damaged facilities.
Li Cohen and
contributed to this report.
CBS News
Tropical Storm Milton forms in Gulf; forecast to strengthen into hurricane headed toward Florida
Tropical Storm Milton has formed in the Gulf of Mexico and is forecast to strengthen into a hurricane headed toward Florida with possible impacts to its western coast, the National Hurricane Center said on Saturday. Maximum sustained winds are expected to be at 40 mph with higher gusts and Milton is currently moving north-northeast, NHC said in an advisory.
Milton is forecast to undergo a period of rapid intensification before it makes landfall as a Category 2 hurricane across Florida’s west coast, CBS News Miami reported.
The forecast comes a little more than a week after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida and across the Southeast, killing more than 200 people and causing immense destruction. President Biden on Thursday took an aerial tour of Florida’s Big Bend where Helene struck as a Category 4 storm. Hundreds of people are still missing and Mr. Biden said the work to rebuild will cost “billions of dollars” as communities suffer still without power, running water and passable roads.
NOAA
Milton is forecast to move across the southwestern Gulf of Mexico through Sunday night then across the south-central Gulf on Monday and Tuesday before reaching Florida’s west coast by the middle of the week, NHC said. Heavy rain is possible in the region starting Sunday into Monday, CBS Miami reported, and more rain and heavy winds will most likely arrive on Wednesday. Hurricane and storm surge watches will most likely be required for portions of Florida starting Sunday, the National Hurricane Center said.
Along with the heavy rainfall, the hurricane center said to expect risks of flooding.
Residents in the area should ensure they have a hurricane plan in place, the National Hurricane Center said, follow the advice of local officials and check back for forecast updates.
