The tax investigation of Hunter Biden – codenamed “Sportsman” – was opened in November 2018 as a “derivation” of an IRS investigation into an “online amateur pornography platform based in stranger,” a whistleblower told the Houses Ways and Means Committee.
The committee released testimony Thursday from two IRS whistleblowers who said Justice Department, FBI and IRS officials intervened in the Hunter Biden investigation. The whistleblowers said the decisions in the case appeared to be “influenced by politics”.
A whistleblower, Gary Shapely Jr., who was the supervisor of the investigation at the IRS, said decisions “at every stage” of the investigation were made that “had the effect of benefiting about the investigation”.
Shapely detailed the origins of the investigation in unsealed congressional testimony Thursday.
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A whistleblower’s testimony about the Hunter Biden tax probe was released Thursday by the House Ways and Means Committee. (Reuters/Elizabeth Frantz/File)
“The investigation into Hunter Biden, codenamed ‘Sportsman’, was first opened in November 2018 following an IRS investigation into an online amateur pornography platform based in the United States. ‘stranger,” Shapely said. The testimony released by the committee did not include any further explanation of how the pornographic outlet and Biden were related.
The investigation was previously thought to have been based, in part, on suspicious foreign transactions.
Almost a year later, in October 2019, Shapely said “the FBI has learned that a repair shop has a laptop that allegedly belongs to Hunter Biden and that the laptop may contain evidence of a crime. “.
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“The FBI verified its authenticity in November 2019 by matching the device number to Hunter Biden’s iCloud Apple ID,” Shapely said. “When the FBI took possession of the device in December 2019, they informed the IRS that it likely contained evidence of tax crimes.”
A whistleblower said the investigation into Hunter Biden, right, was linked to an investigation into a foreign pornography operation. (Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images/File)
Laptop repair shop owner John Paul Mac Isaac was subpoenaed to testify in US District Court in Delaware in December 2019.
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The FBI ownership receipt for the laptop, first obtained by Fox News Digital in 2020, had a “Case ID” section, which was filled in with a handwritten number: 272D-BA-3065729.
The number “272” is the FBI classification for money laundering, while “272D” refers to “Money Laundering, Unknown SUA [Specified Unlawful Activity]— White Collar Crime Program,” according to FBI documents. A government official described “272D” as “transnational or general”.
Shapely said the FBI verified the authenticity of the laptop, even though many of Biden’s allies said it was Russian disinformation.
Biden hunter. (Brian Lawless/PA Images via Getty Images/File)
The revelations come just days after the Justice Department announced that Hunter Biden would plead guilty to two counts of willfully failing to pay federal income tax as part of a deal that is expected to keep him out. from prison. The president’s son has also agreed to enter into a pretrial diversion agreement regarding a separate charge of possession of a firearm by someone who is an illegal or addicted user of a controlled substance.
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In response to the whistleblower allegations, the Justice Department said in a statement: “As Attorney General and U.S. Attorney David Weiss have said, U.S. Attorney Weiss has full authority over this matter, including responsibility for deciding where, when, and whether to file charges it deems appropriate. It does not need any other approval to do so. Questions regarding its investigation should be directed to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Delaware .