Trump judge to oversee Hunter Biden tax case

Hunter Biden was indicted by the U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday on nine tax-related charges, and the case was assigned to Judge Mark Scarsi, an appointee of former President Donald Trump.

In a 56-page document filed in a Los Angeles, California, federal court, President Joe Biden‘s son is accused of failing to pay taxes, filing a fraudulent form and evading an assessment. Three of the nine charges are felony counts.

“The Defendant engaged in a four-year scheme to not pay at least $1.4 million in self-assessed federal taxes he owed for tax years 2016 through 2019,” the indictment read, adding Biden “spent millions of dollars on an extravagant lifestyle rather than paying his tax bills.”

The charges against Biden were brought by Special Counsel David Weiss, who was appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland to oversee the investigation into Biden.

“Between 2016 and October 15, 2020, the Defendant spent this money on drugs, escorts and girlfriends, luxury hotels and rental properties, exotic cars, clothing, and other items of a personal nature, in short, everything but his taxes,” the indictment said.

Reuters reported that Biden faces up to 17 years in prison if convicted of all nine charges. In October, Biden pleaded not guilty to charges that he lied about his drug use while buying a handgun.

Newsweek contacted a lawyer for Hunter Biden and the White House via email Thursday night for comment.

Scarsi is a native of Syracuse, New York, and he attended Syracuse and Georgetown universities.

Then-President Trump announced he would nominate Scarsi to serve as a district judge in October 2018. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate in September 2020.

This is a breaking story and will be updated as more information becomes available.