A top Department of Justice (DOJ) official reportedly approached IRS whistleblower Gary Shapley in April about potentially investigating his allegations that DOJ prosecutors gave Hunter Biden special treatment.
Shapley was contacted by Associate Deputy Attorney General Bradley Weinsheimer, who said he wanted to look into Shapley’s assertions that the DOJ slow-walked and obstructed the Hunter Biden investigation, the whistleblower’s attorneys told the Daily Mail. (RELATED: IRS Whistleblower Gary Shapley’s Attorneys Debunk False Claims From Hunter Biden’s Lawyer)
👉🏻 “In just two short weeks, Weinsheimer went from expressing an interest in the claims of wrongdoing by the IRS whistleblower to dismissing the claims of retaliation when the IRS agents were pulled off the case.” https://t.co/NEf2jkPOtK
— Tristan Leavitt (@tristanleavitt) August 30, 2023
“In just two short weeks, Weinsheimer went from expressing an interest in the claims of wrongdoing by the IRS whistleblower to dismissing the claims of retaliation when the IRS agents were pulled off the case,” Mark Lytle, a partner at the law firm representing Shapley, told the outlet.
Weinsheimer, an aide to Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, emailed Lytle on April 24 asking to set up a phone call after Shapley came forward anonymously with allegations of misconduct in the Hunter Biden case, the Daily Mail reported. Lytle told the outlet he spoke with Weinsheimer the next day and provided a brief overview of Shapley’s accusations.
Shapley’s plans to come forward to Congress were first reported by the Wall Street Journal in April prior to his identity being revealed. He said in a letter to Congress that he wanted to blow the whistle on “special treatment” toward Hunter Biden. Shapley revealed his identity in a May 24 interview with CBS News just before he testified to the House Ways and Means Committee.
Weinsheimer contacted Hunter Biden’s defense counsel Christopher Clark and Delaware U.S. Attorney David Weiss the day after his conversation with Lytle, according to emails first reported on by Politico. (RELATED: Hunter Biden Began Negotiating Plea Deal With DOJ Right After IRS Whistleblower First Came Forward, Court Docs Show)
Discovering what led to the Apr. 26 meeting and what happened between then and May 11 is critical to understanding DOJ HQ’s involvement in a case where AG Merrick Garland swore there was none. It goes to the heart of whether Weiss and Garland misled Congress. /19 pic.twitter.com/2MoDy2FLM0
— Tristan Leavitt (@tristanleavitt) August 25, 2023
Lytle briefed Democratic and Republican lawmakers about Shapley’s accusations in early May, and Shapley was quickly taken off the Hunter Biden case, as was IRS whistleblower Joseph Ziegler, the Daily Mail reported.
Weinsheimer was no longer interested in Shapley’s accusations when he called Lytle and Tristan Leavitt, another attorney for Shapley, on May. 16, Leavitt told the Daily Mail.
“I would say Weinsheimer wanted intel from Gary before his Hill testimony,” Leavitt said. “His lack of interest after he met with Weiss and Clark suggests the cake was baked at that time.”
DOJ prosecutors led by Assistant Delaware U.S. Attorney Lesley Wolf devised a generous plea deal with Biden’s lawyers for two tax misdemeanors, Politico reported. Biden was also expected to sign a diversion agreement for his felony gun charge that contained an immunity provision to protect him from other potential charges.
Hunter Biden’s plea deal fell apart in July because of a disagreement between his defense counsel and DOJ special attorney Leo Wise that arose after Delaware U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika called into question the diversion agreement’s immunity provision.
Noreika’s scrutiny caused a dispute between the two parties over the scope of his potential immunity after Wise said Biden could still be charged under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) for his overseas business dealings. Biden ended up pleading not guilty to the tax charges and the diversion agreement was not put into place.
Hunter Biden’s legal team said in an Aug. 13 court filing that negotiations with the DOJ began in May for resolving the investigation into the president’s son.
Biden’s lawyers were responding to the DOJ’s request to withdraw Biden’s Delaware tax charges in order to potentially charge him in D.C. or the Central District of California. Shapley testified that Weiss was blocked from charging Biden in D.C. and the Central District of California by two Biden-appointed U.S. Attorneys. The New York Times independently confirmed Weiss was blocked from charging Biden in California.
In July, prior to the plea deal’s collapse, Shapley’s attorneys released an email he sent on Oct. 7, 2022, detailing a meeting in which Weiss allegedly said the that D.C. U.S. Attorney blocked him from charging Biden and that the DOJ refused to grant him special counsel status. Weiss and Garland have denied Shapley’s allegation that Garland interfered in the Hunter Biden case.
The House Oversight, Ways and Means and Judiciary Committees have subpoenaed witnesses to the Oct. 7 meeting.
Weiss requested to withdraw the Delaware tax charges after Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed him special counsel on Aug. 11. Noreika granted the DOJ’s request to withdraw the tax charges and they were dismissed without prejudice.