Washington— THE U.S. Attorney in Federal Investigation of Hunter Biden said Justice Department officials assured him he would be allowed to bring charges in jurisdictions outside of Delaware, according to a letter to Congress obtained by CBS News.
In correspondence with Senate Judiciary Ranking Member Lindsey Graham, Trump-appointed Delaware U.S. Attorney David Weiss said he wrote “to clarify an apparent misperception and to avoid future confusion” related to recent IRS whistleblower allegations who worked on the Hunter Biden case.
Last month, Weiss accused the president’s son of two tax charges for misdemeanor — to which Hunter Biden will plead guilty — and a felony firearm charge that will be entered into a diversionary program.
Speaking to congressional investigators and CBS News in recent weeks, Gary Shapleyone of the lead IRS agents on the case, said investigators’ findings support more serious charges and that Weiss was barred from pursuing charges in jurisdictions outside of Delaware, including Washington, D.C. .
Shapley also said Weiss told the investigative team in an Oct. 7, 2022 meeting that he had requested and was denied special advocate status to handle the case. “Weiss said he is not the person who decides whether charges are filed,” Shapley wrote to his supervisor in email correspondence contemporaneous with the meeting that he said he provided to congressional investigators.
“I want to clarify one thing: in this case, I have not requested the appointment of a special advocate,” Weiss said in his Monday letter. “I have had discussions with department officials regarding a possible appointment under 28 USC § 515, which would have allowed me to file a complaint in a district other than my own without the partnership of the local U.S. Attorney. assured that this authority would be granted to me if deemed necessary. And this assurance came months before the meeting of October 7, 2022, referenced throughout the whistleblowers’ allegations.
The section of US law that Weiss refers to in his letter allows prosecutors to be appointed by the attorney general to conduct investigations and charges outside of their federal jurisdiction. “Each specially retained attorney under the authority of the Department of Justice will be appointed as a special assistant to the Attorney General or a special advocate and will take the oath required by law,” the law states.
In the letter, Weiss said he had “never been denied the power to prosecute in any jurisdiction”, echoing statements by Attorney General Merrick Garland made last month.
“[Weiss] had and has full authority … to bring a case wherever he wants, at his discretion,” Garland said.
Responding to Weiss’ letter on Monday, Shapley’s attorneys said in a statement, “The story of US Attorney David Weiss continues to change. process’ included politicians named by the subject’s father, because Congress and the public had been assured that would not be the case, but it is.”
Shapley, who is still a supervisory special agent with the IRS, said investigators had been blocked from pursuing leads implicating President Joe Biden, and said that during an hour-long meeting in 2020, prosecutors had sought to limit questions related to then-President-elect Joe Biden to potential witnesses.
A spokesperson for Weiss’ office previously declined to comment on the allegations.
Mr. Biden and the White House have constantly denied the president was involved in his son’s business dealings. Asked about Shapley’s June 23 testimony, the White House referred CBS News to a previously released statement.
“President Biden has made it clear that this case will be handled independently by the Department of Justice, under the direction of a U.S. attorney appointed by former President Trump, free of political interference from the White House,” it says. the press release. “He kept that promise.”
House Republicans have since sought to question Weiss and members of the investigative team about it.
Garland said last month he would support Weiss’ public testimony on the investigation when the time is right.
In his Monday letter – his second in recent weeks to Congressional Republicans – Weiss said: “I welcome the opportunity to respond to these claims in greater detail at the appropriate time, as permitted by law and Congressional policy. Department.”
Hunter Biden’s deal with prosecutors must be approved by a judge, and a plea hearing is currently set for July 26.
Catherine Herridge contributed to this report.
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