A version of this story appeared in the On Background newsletter from The Washington Times. Click here to receive On Background delivered directly to your inbox each Friday.
Bank investigators flagged $3 million in payments from a Chinese company to Hunter Biden’s law firm as “erratic” and “unusual” and potentially evidence of an influence-peddling scheme.
House lawmakers believe some of the questionable funds ended up in President Biden’s bank account.
On Wednesday, the House Oversight and Accountability Committee disclosed a 2018 email from an investigator at an unidentified bank. The committee is conducting an impeachment inquiry into whether Mr. Biden helped his son and other family members secure lucrative business deals, many with foreign countries, while he was vice president.
On Tuesday, Hunter Biden’s attorney Abbe Lowell demanded a public hearing for the president’s son rather than testimony behind closed doors, under subpoena, at a House deposition scheduled for next month.
Mr. Lowell accused the panel of targeting Hunter Biden for political purposes. Lawmakers said even the banks were suspicious of Hunter Biden’s dealings with foreign entities and smelled an influence-peddling scheme.
“Long before our investigation into President Biden’s corruption, a bank money laundering investigator raised the exact concerns that we raised publicly about the Biden family business,” said committee Chairman James Comer, Kentucky Republican.
Mr. Biden firmly denies involvement in his family’s business deals or taking money from them.
House investigators have discovered two checks made out to Mr. Biden from his younger brother James Biden after James and Hunter Biden secured significant loans, including one from China-based CEFC and its affiliate, Northern International Capital Holdings.
A June 26, 2018, email from bank investigators flags money transfers from a $5 million loan provided to Hunter Biden from Northern International Capital Holdings in August 2017.
At the time, his father was a former vice president.
Bank investigators said much of the $5 million was funneled in just a few months through “erratic” payments into the bank account of Hunter Biden’s law firm, Owasco PC. Payments to Owasco totaling $2.9 million were made over 16 wire transfers ranging from $157,494.19 to $400,000, bank investigators reported in an intercompany email.
The money was first deposited into the account of a shell company, Hudson West III LLC, that Hunter Biden set up with a Chinese business partner.
The wire payments made to Owasco were listed as management fees and reimbursements but raised suspicions among bank investigators. The bank had labeled Hunter Biden a “politically exposed person,” a government designation for account holders who “may present a risk higher than other customers by having access to funds that may be the proceeds of corruption or other illicit activity.”
Investigators also questioned why the money was sent to Hudson West III and what services Owasco provided.
“It was previously indicated that Hudson West III LLC does not currently have any investment projects at this time, which raises further concerns as millions of fees are being paid but does not appear to have any services rendered by Owasco PC,” a bank investigator wrote.
Mr. Comer suspects President Biden collected some of the money.
On Aug. 14, 2017, a little more than a week after Northern International provided the $5 million loan, Hunter Biden transferred $150,000 from Owasco P.C. to a nearly empty bank account for the Lion Hall Group, a company owned by James and Sarah Biden.
On Aug. 28, 2017, Sara Biden, the president’s sister-in-law, withdrew $50,000 from the Lion Hall Group bank account and deposited it into a personal bank account she shared with her husband. Before the deposit, the balance on their personal bank account was $46.88.
On Sept. 3, 2017, Sara Biden wrote and signed the $40,000 check to the former vice president from their personal bank account.
House investigators say evidence provided by IRS whistleblowers who suspected Hunter Biden of tax fraud indicates he used his powerful father to force CEFC to provide the $5 million loan through its affiliate, Northern Capital.
In a July 30, 2017, WhatsApp message to CEFC associate Raymond Zhao, Hunter Biden invoked his father to threaten the company if it did not come through with the original payment demand of $10 million. Whistleblowers provided the message to House investigators.
“I am sitting here with my father and we would like to understand why the commitment made has not been fulfilled,” Hunter Biden told Mr. Zhao in the message.
Making further demands for the payment to be expedited, Hunter Biden said, “I will make certain that between the man sitting next to me and every person he knows and my ability to forever hold a grudge that you will regret not following my direction.”
Records and witness testimony show James and Hunter Biden began building their business relationship with the CEFC while Mr. Biden was vice president in the Obama administration. They avoided accepting any payments from the company until Mr. Biden left office to avoid the appearance of corruption, former business associate Tony Bobulinki said.
Bank investigators said “negative news” about Hunter Biden’s personal behavior at the time of the wire transfer raised additional alarms.
They cited allegations by ex-wife Kathleen about “his extravagant spending on his own interests (drugs, strip clubs, prostitutes, etc.) which may put his family in a deep financial hole.”
The bank investigators cited news that China may be targeting the children of politicians to “purchase political influence” through sweetheart deals.
They pointed to a $1.5 billion deal between China and Hunter Biden to establish a private equity firm that would manage funds and “make huge fees” by investing in companies that benefited the Chinese government.
“Thus, the activity on the account appears unusual with no current business purpose and along with recent negative news … may require a re-evaluation of … relationship with the customer,” bank investigators wrote.
Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the time frame in which the bank flagged money sent from China to Hunter Biden. The transfer occurred during the Trump presidency.
• Susan Ferrechio can be reached at sferrechio@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.