
Alexander Smirnov, a former FBI informant who is accused of lying about the Biden family’s financial links, was refused bail by a federal judge in California on Monday.
In agreement with the prosecution’s contention that Smirnov posed a significant flight risk, U.S. District Judge Otis Wright directed that he remain in detention pending trial.
The defense team for Smirnov contended that their client had previously spent a substantial amount of money fighting the charges, suggesting that he had no plans to run away.
The prosecution used Smirnov’s extensive network as evidence, as did a $3.7 million bank account in his girlfriend’s name.
The trial of Smirnov, 43, will now take place in California rather than Nevada. He is facing charges of spreading false information that could have impacted U.S. elections, with particular emphasis on the allegations of a multimillion-dollar bribery plot between the Bidens and the Ukrainian energy firm Burisma.
According to the prosecution, Smirnov lied to his handler about an alleged 2015 payment of $5 million to then-Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter by officials of Burisma. The Republican impeachment investigation in Congress included the accusation.
The charges against him include fabricating a record and making a false statement. Legal action was initiated in Los Angeles.
The Republican senator from Iowa, Chuck Grassley, boasted about having urged the FBI to investigate the accusations leveled by the former FBI informant Smirnov.
With some redaction, Grassley disclosed an FD-1023 form in July that detailed accusations of bribery and corruption involving the Biden family. The form included talks between Smirnov and the FBI, in which he informed them that the CEO of the Ukrainian energy firm Burisma informed him that he had paid $5 million to Hunter Biden, the son of President Biden, and to President Biden himself.
According to Grassley, the paper leak prompted the FBI to “finally act.”