FBI informant charged with fabricating Biden bribes
Alexander Smirnov falsely reported Joe and Hunter Biden’s ties to Ukrainian energy company Burisma


What happened?
Special counsel David Weiss late Thursday unsealed charges accusing FBI informant Alexander Smirnov of falsely claiming Hunter Biden and his father, President Joe Biden, were each paid $5 million protection bribes by Ukrainian energy company Burisma in 2015 or 2016. Smirnov, 43, was arrested Wednesday at the Las Vegas airport. Weiss is prosecuting Hunter Biden on gun and tax charges.
The commentary
The indictment is a "stinging setback" for House Republicans who featured Smirnov's "explosive story" in their push to impeach Joe Biden, The New York Times said. It is "rare for the FBI to charge one of its informants with lying," The Washington Post said, but Republicans forced the issue by making Smirnov's claims a "kind of cause célèbre."
Who said what?
Smirnov "transformed his routine and unextraordinary" 2017 Burisma business contacts "into bribery allegations" against Biden after "expressing bias" against him during the 2020 campaign, the indictment said. "Republicans have built their conspiracies about Hunter and his family on lies told by people with political agendas, not facts," Hunter Biden's lawyer Abbe Lowell said. Now "the air is out of their balloon."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
What next?
House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) said his committee will "continue to follow the facts" to "determine whether articles of impeachment are warranted." Smirnov faces up to 25 years in jail if convicted.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Democrats: The 2028 race has begun
Feature Democratic primaries have already kicked off in South Carolina
-
The Pentagon's missing missiles
Feature The U.S. military is low on weapons. Can it restock before a major conflict breaks out?
-
Rescissions: Trump's push to control federal spending
Feature The GOP passed a bill to reduce funding for PBS, NPR and other public media stations
-
Trump executive order targets homeless
Speed Read It will now be easier for states and cities to remove homeless people from the streets
-
Columbia pays $200M to settle with White House
Speed Read The Trump administration accused the school of failing to protect its Jewish students amid pro-Palestinian protests
-
Florida judge and DOJ make Epstein trouble for Trump
Speed Read The Trump administration's request to release grand jury transcripts from the Epstein investigation was denied
-
Trump attacks Obama as Epstein furor mounts
Speed Read The Trump administration accused the Obama administration of 'treasonous' behavior during the 2016 election
-
Trump administration releases MLK files
Speed Read Newly released documents on the 1968 assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. did not hold any new revelations, King historians said
-
Loyalty tests: The purge at the FBI
Feature Kash Patel is conducting polygraph tests on FBI agents to weed out anyone speaking badly about him
-
Japan's prime minister feels pressure after election losses
Speed Read Shigeru Ishiba has vowed to remain in office
-
President diagnosed with 'chronic venous insufficiency'
Speed Read The vein disorder has given Trump swollen ankles and visible bruising on his hands