The Justice Department doesn’t want the man accused of lying about the Bidens freely roaming America’s streets.
Federal prosecutors asked District Judge Otis D. Wright on Wednesday to reverse an order releasing Alexander Smirnov from custody.
“As discussed in more detail below, the nature and circumstances of the offense, weight of the evidence, and the fact that Smirnov’s ties to the community are weak establish that Smirnov should be detained,” prosecutors said in court documents filed in the Central District of California cited in The Hill.
Magistrate Judge Daniel J. Albregts in Nevada had released Mr. Smirnov on Tuesday on condition that he wear an electronic GPS monitor.
Mr. Smirnov is accused of falsely telling his FBI handler that executives with the Ukrainian energy company Burisma paid President Biden and his son Hunter $5 million each around 2015.
The Biden administration’s Justice Department argued that Mr. Smirnov, who also is an Israeli citizen, is a flight risk because he had plans to travel outside the U.S. to meet with “multiple foreign intelligence agencies” and also received information from Russian intelligence.
The department also accused Mr. Smirnov of lying about his available assets, saying he has access to more than $6 million in liquid funds that would let him “live comfortably” overseas.
“The fact that Smirnov misrepresented his assets alone should cause Smirnov to be detained because it shows that, at the first opportunity, he did not provide true and complete information to Pretrial Services,” prosecutors wrote.
“No condition or combination of conditions will reasonably assure the appearance of the Smirnov as required,” the prosecutors wrote.
• Victor Morton can be reached at vmorton@washingtontimes.com.
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