The son of US President Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, has been indicted on gun charges. The charges stem from an incident that occurred five years ago when Hunter admits to heavily using drugs.
Hunter Biden is facing two counts of making false statements. He allegedly claimed on forms that he was not using drugs illegally at the time he purchased a Colt revolver in Delaware. Additionally, he has been charged with illegally possessing the gun based on the false statements. If convicted, he could face up to 10 years in prison.
The charges were brought by Justice Department Special Counsel David Weiss, who has been investigating Hunter Biden since 2018. This comes after a plea deal between Biden and Weiss fell apart due to disagreements over potential additional charges that Biden could face.
In the previous deal, Biden agreed to plead guilty to minor tax charges. In exchange, he was offered probation as he had already paid what he owed the government along with penalties. The felony gun charge was supposed to be suspended if Biden completed certain requirements, such as counseling or rehabilitation.
However, the deal collapsed during a hearing in July due to concerns about immunity from other potential charges. The judge mentioned the possibility of Biden being charged as acting as a lobbyist for foreign governments without proper registration. As a result, new charges were dropped by Weiss, and he indicated that an indictment on the gun charge would come at the end of September.
These legal troubles have overshadowed Hunter Biden’s father’s reelection campaign. Republicans have accused Joe Biden’s Justice Department of favoring his son and have criticized Weiss for being lenient in his investigation.