US President Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden depart Old Mission Santa Ines Catholic Church after attending mass in Solvang, California, US Aug 24, 2024.

WASHINGTON — A former FBI informant who was charged by Special Counsel David Weiss with lying about President Joe Biden and his son Hunter’s alleged business dealings with a Ukrainian energy company will plead guilty to one count of causing the creation of a false record in a federal investigation, according to a court filing.

The guilty plea will avert a trial for Alexander Smirnov, who was arrested earlier this year.

Smirnov’s claims about Hunter Biden’s role at the company Burisma Holdings have been heavily scrutinised for years by President-elect Donald Trump and his allies.

Smirnov was accused of making false statements to the FBI when he was recounting two meetings from 2015 and/or 2016 in which executives associated with Burisma told him they had hired Hunter Biden to “protect us, through his dad, from all kinds of problems.”

He was also accused of falsely claiming that Burisma executives had paid US$5 million (S$6.74 million) each to Joe Biden and Hunter Biden during Joe Biden’s vice presidency.

Those allegations were among the claims that helped form the basis of an unsuccessful effort by the Republican-controlled US House of Representatives to impeach President Biden.

According to the terms of the plea agreement, Smirnov will also plead guilty to three counts of tax evasion for 2020, 2021 and 2022.

During those years, Smirnov did not report income collectively totalling more than US$2.1 million.

He could be sentenced to anywhere between 48 to 72 months in prison under US sentencing guidelines.

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