Federal law enforcement has warned that Alexander Smirnov, an Israeli citizen and previous FBI informant now indicted for concocting corruption claims against President Joe Biden and his son Hunter, is spreading new falsehoods that jeopardize the upcoming U.S. elections. This comes after Smirnov reportedly had meetings with Russian intelligence officials.
Read more:
Information from the U.S. Department of Justice reveals that Smirnov, who is accused of delivering deceptive and damaging information about the president and his son during FBI interviews, admitted to having very recent and extensive interactions with foreign intelligence officials.
An assertion for pretrial detention for Smirnov, submitted by the office of Special Counsel David Weiss, maintains Smirnov has connections with various foreign intelligence agencies and had intended to exit the U.S. just two days after his arrest last week.
Following said arrest, Smirnov disclosed to law enforcement that Russian intelligence-associated officials had a hand in circulating a story about Hunter Biden, as stated by the prosecutors.
The court documents further state that Smirnov has acknowledged having several interactions with a Russian intelligence official. This official is characterized as a former Russian government official's son, someone with command over two groups assigned to execute assassinations in a foreign nation, a Russian delegate to another country, and a person linked to a specific Russian intelligence agency.
Prosecutors have noted that Smirnov's projected travel was intended for informal talks with Russian intelligence officials, among others. They caution his attempts to disseminate misleading information about the president are persisting.
Prosecutors assert that Smirnov "is not limiting his disinformation to the 2020 election. After a rendezvous with Russian intelligence officials in November, he is energetically advancing fresh falsehoods that could influence upcoming U.S. elections." They add that, given this situation, there's a significant danger of him fleeing to evade responsibility for his deeds.
On one occasion, Smirnov asserted that Russian intelligence officials, operating from a "club" inside a hotel, had intercepted multiple calls made by high-profile U.S. individuals. These intercepted calls could serve as potential 'kompromat' for the Russian government in the 2024 election, contingent upon the chosen candidates.
Tuesday's filing further enumerates several other purported meetings and details of Smirnov's encounters with Russian intelligence officials. Prosecutors stress these meetings are far from innocuous.
Alexander Smirnov has been indicted by a grand jury for supposedly making false accusations to FBI agents in June 2020. The accusations revolve around his alleged interactions with an executive from Burisma, the Ukrainian energy company where Hunter Biden served as a lawyer before joining its board.
Smirnov is alleged to have informed the agents that Burisma's executives confessed to hiring Hunter Biden with the intention of shielding themselves from various issues involving his father.
Furthermore, Smirnov is accused of alleging that both Joe and Hunter Biden received payments of $5 million from Burisma's executives during Joe Biden's vice presidency. This was supposedly part of an effort to resolve problems arising from a criminal investigation into Burisma and Ukraine.
Smirnov spun a yarn to the agents, suggesting Burisma's higher-ups confided in him that Hunter Biden's appointment was a shield against troubles, courtesy of his father's influence.
These allegations have been thrust into the limelight, featuring in unverified assertions by Republican Congress members amid an impeachment probe into President Biden.
Last week, Hunter Biden's legal team contended that Smirnov's fabrications were an attempt to throw a wrench into what was supposed to be a plea deal between the president's son and federal prosecutors in the previous year. They described his statements as leading U.S. officials down a "rabbit hole of lies."
The office of Special Counsel David Weiss is at the helm of concurrent criminal proceedings against Hunter Biden, who is up against a trio of charges related to illegal firearm acquisition and possession, alongside nine tax-related accusations. These stem from an alleged evasion of $1.4 million in taxes between 2016 and 2019. Hunter Biden has entered a plea of not guilty on all counts.