Ex-FBI Informant Alexander Smirnov Pleads Guilty to Lying About Biden-Burisma Bribery Scheme

Dec 16, 2024, 01:58 PM

Alexander Smirnov, a former FBI informant, is set to plead guilty on Monday to charges of lying about a phony bribery scheme involving President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden. Smirnov, who has been in custody since his arrest in February, is expected to make the plea in Los Angeles to a felony charge connected to the false story. His allegations, made in June 2020 after expressing bias against Joe Biden as a presidential candidate, claimed that executives from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma paid Joe and Hunter Biden $5 million each around 2015. Despite these claims, no evidence has emerged that Joe Biden acted corruptly or accepted bribes. Smirnov had only routine business dealings with Burisma starting in 2017, and an FBI field office recommended closing the case in August 2020. Smirnov's plea agreement recommends a sentence of between four and six years in prison. His claims played a significant role in the Republican impeachment inquiry in Congress, and he also claimed that the Russians likely had recordings of Hunter Biden from a hotel in Ukraine's capital, information he said was passed along by four high-level Russian officials. The case against Smirnov was brought by special counsel David Weiss.