Federal agents investigating Hunter Biden, the son of US President Joe Biden, believe they have evidence of tax crimes and it will be up to a prosecutor to decide whether to bring any charges.
The Washington Post, citing people familiar with the case, on Thursday said investigators also believe they have sufficient evidence to charge the younger Mr Biden with making a false statement in connection with a gun purchase.
It would be up to the US Attorney in Delaware, an appointee of former president Donald Trump, to decide whether to file charges against the 52-year-old Mr Biden.
The president's son, a lawyer and lobbyist, acknowledged in a statement in December 2020 that his tax affairs were under federal investigation and denied any wrongdoing.
From 2014 to 2019, while his father was vice president, Mr Biden served notably on the board of Burisma, a Ukrainian gas company.
Mr Trump was impeached by the US House of Representatives in 2019 for trying to pressure Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy into digging up what he alleged was compromising information on Mr Biden.
The Post reported that federal agents believe they have gathered sufficient evidence to charge Mr Biden with tax crimes and lying on gun purchase paperwork in 2018.
The newspaper said US Attorney General Merrick Garland has left any decision on whether charges should be brought in the hands of US Attorney David Weiss in Delaware, the Bidens' home state.
A lawyer for Mr Biden, Chris Clark, told the Post that federal agents are not allowed to leak information to the media.
“It is a federal felony for a federal agent to leak information about a Grand Jury investigation such as this one,” Mr Clark said in a statement.
“As is proper and legally required, we believe the prosecutors in this case are diligently and thoroughly weighing not just evidence provided by agents, but also all the other witnesses in this case, including witnesses for the defence.
“That is the job of the prosecutors. They should not be pressured, rushed or criticised for doing their job.”
