Weiss report: Hunter’s drug use can’t be explained by not paying taxes on ‘last name’ money

Special Prosecutor David Weiss’ final report on his year-long investigation into Hunter Biden found that the first son’s drug abuse could not be explained by his failure to pay taxes on the millions of dollars in income earned through his “surname and connections.”

“As a well-educated lawyer and businessman, Mr. Biden knowingly and intentionally chose not to pay at least $1.4 million in taxes over a four-year period. From 2016 to 2020, Mr. Biden received more than $7 million in total gross of revenue , including approximately $1.5 million in 2016, $2.3 million in 2017, $2.1 million in 2018, $1 million in 2019 and $188,000 from January to October 15, 2020,” Weiss wrote in his final report, which was released Monday.

“Mr. Biden made this money by using his family name and connections to secure lucrative business opportunities, such as a seat on the board of a Ukrainian industrial conglomerate, Burisma Holdings Limited, and joint ventures with individuals associated with a Chinese energy conglomerate. He negotiated and executed contracts and agreements that paid him millions of dollars for limited work,” Weiss continued.

Hunter Biden, 54, had a busy year in court last year, when was convicted in two separate federal cases pursued by Weiss. He began his first trial in Delaware in June, when he faced three drug-related charges, before pleading guilty in September in a separate tax case.

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Hunter Biden’s September trial revolved around charges of three felony tax offenses and six misdemeanor tax offenses related to the failure to pay at least $1.4 million in taxes. However, just as jury selection was set to begin in Los Angeles federal court for the case, Hunter Biden suddenly pleaded guilty.

Weiss continued in his report that Hunter Biden “spent millions of dollars on an extravagant lifestyle instead of paying his tax bills,” and that he “deliberately failed to pay his 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 taxes on time, despite that he had access to the funds to pay some or all of these taxes.”

Weiss added that the first son’s previous drug abuse cannot explain his failure to pay taxes.

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“These are not ‘inconsequential’ or ‘technical’ violations of the tax code,” Weiss wrote. “Nor can Mr. Biden’s behavior be explained by his drug use — most obviously, Mr. Biden filed his false 2018 return, in which he intentionally underreported his income to reduce his tax liability, in February 2020, approximately eight months after Mr. Biden’s prosecution was therefore warranted given the nature and seriousness of his tax crimes.”

Hunter has a well documented history of drug abusemost prominently documented in his 2021 memoir Beautiful Things. The book took readers through his previous addiction to crack cocaine, before he got sober in 2019. The memoir was heavily referenced in his separate firearms case in June, when he was found guilty by a jury of three felonies related to purchasing a gun while under the influence.

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“The evidence showed that Mr. Biden held high-paying positions that brought him millions of dollars, and chose to continue to fund his extravagant lifestyle instead of paying taxes. He then chose to lie to his accountants by claiming false business deductions when, in fact, he knew is that these are personal expenses. He did it on his own, and his tax preparers relied on him, because, among other things, he understood the true nature of his deductions and did not provided records that could reveal that the deductions were fraudulent,” Weiss continued.

Charges in the tax cases led to 17 years behind bars, but the first son likely would have faced a much shorter sentence under federal sentencing guidelines. His verdict was scheduled for December 16, but his people pardoned him father, president biden, earlier that month.

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Hunter Biden’s blanket pardon spans a decade that applies to all offenses he has “committed or is likely to commit” at the federal level.

The Weiss report also addressed the president’s pardon of Hunter Biden, specifically how President Biden described the prosecution of Hunter Biden as “selective” and “unfair.”

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“This statement is unnecessary and wrong,” Weiss wrote in his report. “Other presidents have pardoned family members, but none have used that opportunity as an opportunity to vilify public servants in the Department of Justice based solely on false accusations.”

“Politicians who attack the decisions of career prosecutors as politically motivated when they disagree with the outcome of the case undermine public confidence in our criminal justice system” Weiss wrote in another section of the report. “The president’s statements unfairly call into question the integrity not only of Justice Department staff, but of all public servants who make these difficult decisions in good faith.”

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The DOJ sent Weiss’s report to Congress on Monday night, officially ending the long-running investigation into the first son.

Fox News Digital’s Brooke Singman contributed to this report.