Hunter Biden hit with criminal gun charge in US special counsel probe
- He is accused of deceiving a gun dealer into selling him a firearm, in the first-ever prosecution of a sitting US president’s child
- Hunter Biden faces 3 criminal counts related to lying about the fact that he was using illegal drugs at that time, which would have banned him from owning a gun
US President Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden was criminally charged on Thursday with deceiving a gun dealer into selling him a firearm, in the first-ever prosecution of a sitting president’s child.
The indictment filed on Thursday in US District Court in Delaware charged Hunter Biden with three criminal counts related to lying about the fact that he was using illegal drugs at that time, which would have banned him under the law from owning a firearm.
The charges ensure that courtroom drama will play an outsize role in the 2024 US presidential campaign as Joe Biden, 80, seeks re-election in a likely rematch with his Republican predecessor Donald Trump, 77, who faces four coming criminal trials.
The new charges against Hunter Biden brought by recently elevated US Special Counsel David Weiss say nothing about any violations of US tax law.
A prior deal under which Hunter Biden, 53, would have pleaded guilty to two misdemeanour tax charges and enrol in a programme to avoid prosecution on a gun-related charge collapsed in a stunning turn in a July hearing.
Prosecutors accused the younger Biden of lying about his use of narcotics when he bought a Colt Cobra handgun in October 2018.