Last September, the 53-year-old became the first son of a serving US president to have criminal charges brought against him
Hunter Biden and his attorneys Abbe Lowell (R), and Kevin Morris (L) attend the House Oversight and Accountability Committee hearing in the Rayburn Building on January 10, 2024, in Washington DC. © Tom Williams/Getty Images
Investigators last year detected cocaine residue on a gun pouch belonging to US President Joe Biden’s son Hunter, Politico has reported, citing federal prosecutors. Officials supposedly disclosed their findings to convince the judge to proceed with the case amid the defendant’s attempts to get the gun-related charges against him dropped.
Back in September, Hunter Biden earned the dubious distinction of being the first-ever son or daughter of a sitting US president to be criminally indicted. The 53-year-old also faces a slew of tax-related charges.
According to a statement released last month by the Department of Justice and US Attorney David Weiss, who is the special counsel leading a long-running investigation into the president’s son, Hunter Biden could be handed a maximum of 17 years behind bars if found guilty on all counts.
The presidential scion’s trouble with the law has led Republicans to question Joe Biden’s own integrity, with accusations of corruption made against the Democrat.
In its report on Tuesday, Politico quoted federal prosecutors as revealing that “investigators literally found drugs on the pouch where the defendant had kept his gun,” with an FBI chemist later determining that it was cocaine.
Prosecutors have insisted that the “strength of the evidence against [Hunter Biden] is overwhelming,” dismissing his defense team’s claims that the charges are politically motivated.
They reportedly cited, among other things, the defendant’s admissions about his drug use, which he made in his 2021 memoir.
Hunter Biden previously pleaded not guilty to charges that he lied about his addiction when he filled out a form to purchase a gun back in October 2018.
Last month, the Department of Justice filed nine new charges against him, including failure to file and pay taxes, tax evasion, and filing a false return.
According to the authorities, the president’s son “engaged in a four-year scheme to not pay at least $1.4 million in self-assessed federal taxes,” spending “millions of dollars on an extravagant lifestyle,” that supposedly included drugs.
Officials also pointed out that Hunter Biden had “earned handsomely” while serving on the boards of Ukrainian industrial conglomerate Burisma, as well as a Chinese company, CEFC China Energy Co Ltd.
In December, the president’s son ignored a subpoena issued by the Republican-led House Oversight Committee investigating his father’s alleged involvement in his business dealings. The proceedings are part of an ongoing effort by the GOP to impeach President Biden.
