News/Commentary

Whistleblower drops bombshell claim that DOJ told IRS to avoid ‘hot water’ by not interviewing some Biden fam

June 24, 2023 | | Print Article

IRS whistleblowers informed Congress that Department of Justice (DOJ) official, Assistant United States Attorney Lesley Wolf, warned they would get into “hot water” if they attempted to interview President Joe Biden’s grandchildren as part of their federal investigation into Hunter Biden.

As BizPac Review reported, on Thursday, House Ways and Means Committee Committee Chairman Jason Smith (R-Mo.) released shocking transcripts of interviews with two whistleblowers — IRS Criminal Supervisory Special Agent Gary Shapley Jr., who oversaw the probe, and an unnamed IRS special agent.

Both whistleblowers claim they were told to steer clear of the president’s grandkids — a “completely abnormal” request, given they were following up on payments Hunter made involving his children, including tuition to Colombia University.

“So I can say for the kids — there was Columbia school tuition, $30,000. That was deducted — I believe that was for [redacted] or [redacted]. There was prep, study prep, checks that were deducted for one of the kids or one of — and when I say the kids, one of Hunter’s kids,” the unnamed IRS agent said. “So it wasn’t just those smaller dollar amounts. There were others that were included in there.”

According to the special agent, “there were other payments or other credit card payments, so for clothing, for jewelry, for certain things. There’s a ton of different expenses that were also included in there, in addition to something like Columbia or prep or the tuition.”

Speaking to those involved, he explained, was important to establish whether the write-offs Hunter was claiming were legitimate.

ADVERTISEMENT

“So as a part of our cases — you have to have a third party that comes in. And we can’t just rely on that statement that, oh, it’s not deductible. We have to actually call someone in, as a witness, to confirm what that’s for,” the agent said.

However, Wolf warned against trying to interview the grandchildren.

“I can recall wanting to interview and getting records from Hunter Biden’s children and members of the Biden family,” the unnamed agent said. “There were expenses paid for the children, as well as potential credit card expenditures and Venmo payments, that were deducted on the tax return.”

“On October 21st, 2021, AUSA Lesley Wolf told us it will get us into hot water if we interview the President’s grandchildren,” he continued. “That was completely abnormal, out of the question. And it’s a part of our normal process that we go and interview people, especially people who are receiving money or receiving payments related to a case like this.”

ADVERTISEMENT

So “inappropriate” were some of the comments made by officials in U.S. Attorney David Weiss’s office, the agent said, his supervisor suggested the IRS agents start documenting them.

“[A]fter discussions we were having internally, my supervisor felt it necessary when some of the inappropriate comments that were being made — to start documenting them,” the whistleblower said. “So, yeah, it says in quotes, ‘will get us into a lot of hot water if we interview the President’s grandchildren.'”

“I don’t remember what ultimately happened with the grandchildren,” he said. “I know I have never interviewed them, and we have not interviewed them.”

In his testimony, Shapley also discussed Wolf’s efforts to hamper the investigation.

According to Shapley, it was “clear we needed to search the guest house at the Bidens’ Delaware residence where Hunter Biden stayed for a time.”

ADVERTISEMENT

“In a September 3rd, 2023 [2020], pros meeting, the Assistant United States Attorney, Lesley Wolf, told us there was more than enough probable cause for the physical search warrant there, but the question was whether the juice was worth the squeeze,” he said.

Wolf “continued that optics were a driving factor in the decision on whether to 15 execute a search warrant,” according to Shapley. “She said a lot of evidence in our investigation would be found in the guest house of former Vice President Biden, but said there is no way we will get that approved.”

According to Shapley’s testimony:

This same sort of unprecedented behavior continued through 2021. For example, as I wrote to my chain of command on a May 3rd, 2021, memo: “This investigation has been hampered and slowed by claims of potential election meddling. Through interviews and review of evidence obtained, it appears there may be campaign finance criminal violations. AUSA Wolf stated on the last prosecution team meeting that she did not want any of the agents to look into the allegation. She cited a need to focus on the 2014 tax year, that we could not yet prove an allegation beyond a reasonable doubt, and that she does not want to include their Public Integrity Unit because they would take authority away from her. We do not agree with her obstruction on this matter,” end quote.

After we shared on August 18th, 2021, and multiple times thereafter about interviews we had planned, on September 9th, 2021, AUSA Wolf emailed us: “I do not think you are going to be able to do these interviews as planned.” She told us they would require approval from the Tax Division.

ADVERTISEMENT

These delays extended through September and into October. Then the United States Attorney’s Office raised other objections. Part of what we examined were charges made with Hunter Biden’s card that might conceivably have been done by his children. However, on October 21st, 2021, AUSA Wolf told us it will get us into hot water if we interview the President’s grandchildren.

 

“While the impression was that the U.S. Attorney in Delaware has essentially the powers of special counsel in this case, free rein to do as needed, as is clearly shown, this was not the case,” the unnamed agent said in his testimony. “The U.S. Attorney in Delaware in our investigation was constantly hamstrung, limited, and marginalized by DOJ officials as well as other U.S. Attorneys.”

When asked about the whistleblower’s damning testimonies during a press conference, Attorney General Merrick Garland denied the claims of DOJ interference.


(Video: YouTube)

“As I said at the outset, Mr. Weiss, who was appointed by President Trump as the U.S. attorney in Delaware and assigned this matter during the previous administration, would be permitted to continue his investigation and to make a decision to prosecute any way in which he wanted to and in any district in which he wanted to. Mr. Weiss has since sent a letter to the House Judiciary Committee confirming that he had that authority,” he told reporters.

In a statement to Fox News Digital on Friday, Christopher Clark, an attorney for Hunter Biden, called the claims “dangerously misleading” and pointed to Hunter’s “time of turmoil.”

“Biased and politically motivated, selective leaks have plagued this matter for years. They are not only irresponsible, they are illegal. A close examination of the document released publicly yesterday by a very biased individual raises serious questions over whether it is what he claims it to be. It is dangerously misleading to make any conclusions or inferences based on this document,” Clark said. “The DOJ investigation covered a period which was a time of turmoil and addiction for my client.”

“[A]ny verifiable words or actions of my client in the midst of a horrible addiction are solely his own and have no connection to anyone in his family,” he stressed.

“An extensive, five-year-long investigation conducted by the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) concluded this week, which resulted in my client taking responsibility for two instances of misdemeanor failure to file tax payments, as well as a firearm charge, which will be subject to a pretrial diversion agreement,” Clark stated. “As his attorney through this entire matter, I can say that any suggestion the investigation was not thorough, or cut corners, or cut my client any slack, is preposterous and deeply irresponsible.”

Melissa Fine
Latest posts by Melissa Fine (see all)

Comment

We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.

Latest Articles