Ex-FBI informant who made up bribery story about the Bidens will stay in prison, judge rules

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A federal judge has denied the U.S. government's request to release from prison a former FBI informant who fabricated a story about President Joe Biden and his son Hunter accepting bribes that became central to Republicans’ impeachment effort.

The decision, issued Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Otis Wright in Los Angeles, comes weeks after a new prosecutor was reassigned to the case and jointly filed a motion with Alexander Smirnov's attorneys seeking his release while he appeals his conviction.

Smirnov, 44, was sentenced to six years in prison in early January after pleading guilty in federal court in Los Angeles to tax evasion and lying to the FBI about the phony bribery scheme, which was described by the previous prosecutors assigned to the case as an effort to influence the outcome of the 2020 presidential election.

His attorneys, David Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld, told The Associated Press in a text that they will appeal the judge's decision and “continue to advocate for Mr. Smirnov's release.” The U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles declined to comment.

Smirnov had been originally prosecuted by former Justice Department special counsel David Weiss, who resigned in January days before President Donald Trump returned to the White House for his second term.

In their motion seeking Smirnov's release, the U.S. government said it would review its "theory of the case.” The motion also noted that Smirnov's release from custody would allow him to receive proper treatment for health issues related to his eyes.

Smirnov has been in custody since February 2024. He was arrested at the Las Vegas airport after returning to the U.S. from overseas.

Smirnov, a dual U.S. and Israeli citizen, falsely claimed to his FBI handler that around 2015, executives from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma had paid then-Vice President Biden and his son $5 million each.

The explosive claim in 2020 came after Smirnov expressed "bias” about Biden as a presidential candidate, according to prosecutors at the time. In reality, investigators found Smirnov had only routine business dealings with Burisma starting in 2017 — after Biden's term as vice president.

Authorities said Smirnov's false claim “set off a firestorm in Congress” when it resurfaced years later as part of the House impeachment inquiry into Biden, who won the presidency over Trump in 2020. The Biden administration dismissed the impeachment effort as a “stunt.”

Weiss also brought gun and tax charges against Hunter Biden, who was supposed to be sentenced in December after being convicted at a trial in the gun case and pleading guilty to tax charges. But he was pardoned by his father, who said he believed “raw politics has infected this process and it led to a miscarriage of justice.”

___

Follow the AP's coverage of Hunter Biden at https://apnews.com/hub/hunter-biden.