By Steve Neavling
A federal judge in Los Angeles has denied a request to release a former FBI informant who fabricated a bribery story involving President Joe Biden and his son Hunter, an allegation that later fueled Republican efforts to impeach the president.
U.S. District Judge Otis Wright rejected the joint request from prosecutors and defense attorneys to release Alexander Smirnov while he appeals his conviction, saying he still poses a flight risk, the Associated Press reports.
“The fact remains that Smirnov has been convicted and sentenced to seventy-two months in prison, providing ample incentive to flee,” Wright wrote in his decision Wednesday.
Smirnov, 44, pleaded guilty in January to tax evasion and lying to the FBI. Prosecutors said he falsely claimed that Burisma, a Ukrainian energy company, paid $5 million each to Joe and Hunter Biden around 2015. Investigators later determined Smirnov’s only interactions with Burisma were routine and began after Biden’s vice presidency.
The claim, which Smirnov made in 2020 after expressing bias against Biden, was cited by House Republicans during their failed attempt to impeach the president. The White House dismissed the probe as a political stunt.
Smirnov has been in custody since February 2024, when he was arrested at the Las Vegas airport after returning from overseas. He holds both U.S. and Israeli citizenship.
His attorneys, David Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld, said they plan to appeal the ruling and “continue to advocate for Mr. Smirnov’s release.”
Smirnov was initially charged by former special counsel David Weiss, who resigned in January shortly before Donald Trump returned to office. Weiss also prosecuted Hunter Biden, who was convicted on federal gun charges and pleaded guilty to tax violations. President Biden later pardoned his son, calling the case politically motivated.
