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The Justice Department is sending subpoenas and using a recently convened grand jury in Seattle as it widens a criminal investigation into the door plug that blew off a Boeing 737 Max 9 jetliner in January, a person familiar with the matter said on Friday. A preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Board said four bolts meant to secure the door plug in place were missing before the panel blew off. This month, it was reported that the Justice Department had opened a criminal investigation of Boeing, which had reinstalled the door plug during maintenance in Renton, Wash., before delivering the plane to Alaska Airlines in October. The subpoenas and use of the grand jury were reported earlier Friday by Bloomberg. Boeing said it agreed with the F.A.A.’s decision and pledged to cooperate.

Persons: jetliner Organizations: Boeing, Max, Alaska Airlines, Portland International, National Transportation Safety, Justice Department, Bloomberg, Federal Aviation Administration Locations: Seattle, Oregon, Renton, Wash, Alaska

☆ Special Counsel Who Investigated Biden Offers Fierce Defense of Report
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-12 | by ( Glenn Thrush | Luke Broadwater | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Robert K. Hur, the special counsel who investigated President Biden, on Tuesday fiercely defended the disparaging assessment of the president’s mental state included in his final report — and his decision not to charge Mr. Biden with a crime. Mr. Hur, appearing before the House Judiciary Committee to answer questions about his polarizing 345-page report, cast himself as an impartial arbiter. He said he had expressed concerns about Mr. Biden’s memory because he needed to justify not bringing a case against Mr. Biden after some evidence showed that the president had willfully retained sensitive material from his vice presidency. “I resolved to do the work as I did all my work for the department: fairly, thoroughly and professionally,” he said in his opening statement. Mr. Hur, a registered Republican who has been slammed by Mr. Biden’s allies for including his politically damaging assessment of Mr. Biden’s memory, showed little emotion during the hearing, but reacted angrily when a Democrat suggested he had “smeared” the president to bolster Mr. Trump.

Persons: Robert K, Hur, Biden, —, Mr, . Hur, “, ”, Mr . Hur, Biden’s, Trump Organizations: Democrat

☆ Robert Hur, Special Counsel Who Investigated Biden, to Testify Before Congress
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-12 | by ( Glenn Thrush | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Robert K. Hur will walk into a Capitol Hill hearing room on Tuesday as a uniquely unifying figure in divided Washington — a man disdained by Democrats and Republicans alike. In February, Mr. Hur, the special counsel who investigated President Biden, concluded a yearlong investigation into Mr. Biden’s retention of sensitive government documents by finding that the president should face no criminal charges. But Mr. Hur, using language Mr. Biden’s team saw as gratuitous, politically damaging and outside his job description, described the octogenarian president as “a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory,” likely to be acquitted by any jury. Mr. Hur, 51, will face withering questioning from both parties when he testifies before the House Judiciary Committee to explain his exoneration of Mr. Biden and the barbed prose in his 345-page report.

Persons: Robert K, Hur, Biden, Biden’s, Mr . Hur, Mr Organizations: Democrats, Republicans, Mr, Committee Locations: Washington

☆ Poised and Precise, Hur Enters Fray Over Special Counsel’s Report on Biden
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-12 | by ( Glenn Thrush | Luke Broadwater | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The former special counsel Robert K. Hur, denounced by Democrats for his unsparing description of President Biden’s memory lapses, had one of his own during his testimony on Tuesday before the House Judiciary Committee. Representative James R. Comer, a Kentucky Republican, made passing reference to Dana A. Remus, a Democratic lawyer who had served as White House counsel under Mr. Biden from January 2021 to July 2022. Mr. Hur crinkled an eyebrow and corrected him: No, he said, she occupied that post under President Obama. The misstep was an isolated moment in an otherwise poised and precise appearance by Mr. Hur, 51, who was testifying about his report on the investigation into Mr. Biden’s handling of classified documents. Mr. Hur, a Trump-era Justice Department official known among former colleagues for keeping a cool head in high-stress, high-stakes situations, incited a furor after describing the president as a “well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.”

Persons: Robert K, Hur, James R, Comer, Dana A, Remus, Biden, Mr, Obama, Mr . Hur, . Hur, ” Organizations: Kentucky Republican, Democratic, White, -, Department Locations: Kentucky

The Justice Department has begun a criminal investigation into Boeing after a panel on one of the company’s planes blew out on an Alaska Airlines flight in early January, a person familiar with the matter said. to be conducting an investigation,” Alaska Airlines said in a statement. “We are fully cooperating and do not believe we are a target of the investigation.” Boeing had no comment. On Jan. 5, a panel on a Boeing 737 Max 9 jet operated by Alaska Airlines blew out in midair, exposing passengers to the outside air thousands of feet above ground. The panel is known as a “door plug” and is used to cover a gap left by an unneeded exit door.

Persons: ” Organizations: Department, Boeing, Alaska Airlines, ” Boeing, Max, National Transportation Safety Board

☆ Ex-Google Engineer Charged With Stealing A.I. Secrets for Chinese Firm
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( Glenn Thrush | Nico Grant | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A Chinese citizen who recently quit his job as a software engineer for Google in California has been charged with trying to transfer artificial intelligence technology to a Beijing-based company that paid him secretly, according to a federal indictment unsealed on Wednesday. Prosecutors accused Linwei Ding, who was part of the team that designs and maintains Google’s vast A.I. supercomputer data system, of stealing information about the “architecture and functionality” of the system, and of pilfering software used to “orchestrate” supercomputers “at the cutting edge of machine learning and A.I. technology.”From May 2022 to May 2023, Mr. Ding, also known as Leon, uploaded 500 files, many containing trade secrets, from his Google-issued laptop to the cloud by using a multistep scheme that allowed him to “evade immediate detection,” according to the U.S. attorney’s office for the Northern District of California. Mr. Ding was arrested on Wednesday morning at his home in Newark, Calif., not far from Google’s sprawling main campus in Mountain View, officials said.

Persons: Linwei Ding, Ding, Leon Organizations: Google, Prosecutors, Northern, Northern District of Locations: California, Beijing, Northern District, Northern District of California, Newark , Calif, Mountain View

A Massachusetts Air National Guardsman accused of posting secret intelligence reports and sensitive documents online agreed to plead guilty on Monday in exchange for a 16-year sentence and a commitment to comprehensively brief officials on the extent of his leaks. The airman, Jack Teixeira, withdrew his not-guilty plea during an appearance in Boston federal court and pleaded guilty to six counts of “willful retention and transmission of national defense information,” according to court documents filed by the government. The judge in the case, Indira Talwani, scheduled a hearing in September to determine whether she would sign off on the deal. It would be highly unusual for a judge to make major alterations to a deal that required approval from top American intelligence and law enforcement officials. The Justice Department agreed not to charge him with violations of the Espionage Act, which, when combined with the other charges, could have resulted in a sentence of up to 60 years in prison had he been convicted.

Persons: Jack Teixeira, Indira Talwani Organizations: Massachusetts Air National, The Justice Department Locations: Boston

The Justice Department is reviewing whether an early January incident in which a part of a Boeing plane blew out in midflight violated a 2021 agreement to settle a criminal charge against the company, according to a person familiar with the review. Boeing agreed to pay more than $2.5 billion to settle the charge, which stemmed from two fatal crashes of its 737 Max 8 planes. The Justice Department agreed to drop a criminal charge that was based on the actions of two employees who had withheld information from the F.A.A. There were no serious injuries, but the incident could have been catastrophic had it occurred minutes later, at a higher altitude. The panel is known as a “door plug,” which is used to cover a gap left by an unneeded exit door.

Persons: Trump Organizations: Boeing, Justice Department Locations: midflight, Portland ,

Michael Cargill, owner of Central Texas Gun Works in Austin, opposes the ban on bump stock sales. “During the Trump administration, the bump stock ban cropped up as a rather glaring example of unlawful administrative power,” Philip Hamburger, a founder of the New Civil Liberties Alliance, said in an email. Image A bump stock attaches to a semiautomatic rifle and enables it to fire at a much higher rate. In response, the Justice Department promised to review the legality of bump stocks, but A.T.F. Eventually, the full court agreed with Mr. Cargill by vote of 13 to 3, split along ideological lines.

Persons: Michael Cargill, ”, Cargill, Trump, ” Philip Hamburger, Elizabeth B, Prelogar, George Frey, Cargill strolled, “, Mark Chenoweth, ” Mr, Chenoweth, Obama, ” “, Mr, Charles Koch, Jonathan F, Mitchell, Donald J, Stephen Paddock, Erin Schaff, Jennifer Walker Elrod Organizations: Central Texas Gun, Government, Army, New Civil Liberties Alliance, —, Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, Explosives, National Firearms, Charles Koch Foundation, Koch Industries, Colorado Supreme, National Rifle Association, Justice Department, Congress, The New York Times Federal, U.S ., Appeals, Fifth Circuit, Mr, Gun Control Locations: Austin, Las Vegas, ”, “, Texas

☆ Ex-F.B.I. Informant to Be Held in Custody Indefinitely, Judge Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Lauren Herstik | Glenn Thrush | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

informant charged with falsely claiming that President Biden and his son Hunter had accepted bribes, will be held in custody indefinitely because he poses a significant flight risk, a judge in California ruled on Monday. After a 45-minute hearing, a bespectacled Mr. Smirnov — stocky, bearded with close-cropped salt-and-pepper hair and wearing tan and orange prison togs — pleaded not guilty in heavily accented English, turning around briefly to wave at his longtime girlfriend seated in the gallery. Prosecutors working for David C. Weiss, the special counsel investigating Hunter Biden, offered new details about the circumstances of Mr. Smirnov’s rearrest last week in the office of his lawyer. They grew alarmed after a search of the $980,000 condo where he has lived for the past two years revealed nine handguns, they said. (Prosecutors said that Mr. Smirnov had paid for the apartment but that it was in his girlfriend’s name.)

Persons: Alexander Smirnov, Biden, Hunter, Smirnov, —, Otis D, Wright, David C, Weiss, Hunter Biden, Smirnov’s rearrest Organizations: Federal, Court, Prosecutors Locations: California, Las Vegas, Russia

☆ Ignoring Warnings, G.O.P. Trumpeted Now-Discredited Allegation Against Biden
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Luke Broadwater | Glenn Thrush | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In May 2023, Senator Charles E. Grassley, a chief antagonist of President Biden, strode to the Senate floor with some shocking news: He had learned, he said, of a document in the F.B.I.’s possession that could reveal “a criminal scheme involving then-Vice President Biden.”Mr. Grassley, an Iowa Republican, suggested to any Americans listening that there was a single document that could confirm the most sensational corruption allegations against Mr. Biden — and that the Federal Bureau of Investigation was engaging in a coverup. “Did they sweep it under the rug to protect the candidate Biden?” he asked conspiratorially. Over the next few months, Mr. Grassley’s quest to make public the allegation — laid out in an obscure document known as an F.B.I. Form 1023 — became a fixation, and a foundation of the growing Republican push to impeach Mr. Biden as payback for Democrats’ treatment of former President Donald J. Trump. At the center of it all was the unsubstantiated accusation that Mr. Biden had taken a $5 million bribe from the executive of a Ukrainian energy company, Burisma.

Persons: Charles E, Grassley, Biden, strode, ’, ” Mr, Mr, Biden —, ”, conspiratorially, —, Donald J Organizations: Iowa Republican, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Trump Locations: Iowa, “, Ukrainian

☆ Ex-F.B.I. Informant to Appear in Federal Court in Las Vegas
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Glenn Thrush | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Alexander Smirnov, 43, the former F.B.I. informant accused of peddling lies about President Biden and his son Hunter, is scheduled to appear in federal court on Friday after being arrested for the second time in a week. Mr. Smirnov was sitting in his lawyer’s office in Las Vegas Thursday morning when U.S. Marshals burst in to take him into custody. The bizarre episode is the latest development in a case that has spawned public interest and confusion in equal measure, centering on an enigmatic fixer whose accusations formed the fractured bedrock of a push by Republicans to impeach Mr. Biden.

Persons: Alexander Smirnov, Biden, Hunter, Smirnov, Mr Organizations: U.S Locations: Las Vegas

☆ The Informant Turned Defendant Who Took Aim at the Bidens
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Glenn Thrush | Kenneth P. Vogel | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For more than a decade, he played a double game, giving the F.B.I. In 2020, Mr. Smirnov told his F.B.I. handler what prosecutors say was a brazen lie — that the oligarch owner of the Ukrainian energy company Burisma had arranged to pay $5 million bribes to both President Biden and his son Hunter. The explosive claim was leaked to Republicans, who made Mr. Smirnov’s allegations a centerpiece of their now-stalled effort to impeach President Biden, apparently without verifying the allegation. Last week, Mr. Smirnov, 43, was indicted on charges that he lied to investigators about the Bidens.

Persons: Alexander Smirnov, Smirnov, Burisma, Biden, Hunter Organizations: Soviet Locations: Soviet Union, Ukrainian

☆ Ex-Informant Accused of Lying About Bidens Said He Had Russian Contacts
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Glenn Thrush | Alan Feuer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

informant accused of making false bribery claims about President Biden and his son Hunter — which were widely publicized by Republicans — claimed to have been fed information by Russian intelligence, according to a court filing on Tuesday. But Mr. Smirnov told federal investigators that “officials associated with Russian intelligence were involved in passing a story” about Hunter Biden. Those disclosures, including Mr. Smirnov’s unverifiable claim that he met with Russian intelligence officials as recently as three months ago, made him a flight risk and endangered national security, Justice Department officials said. Mr. Smirnov had been held in custody in Las Vegas, where he has lived since 2022, since his arrest last week. He was released from custody on Tuesday on a personal recognizance bond after a detention hearing, said his lawyers, David Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld.

Persons: Biden, Hunter —, Republicans —, Alexander Smirnov, Smirnov, Hunter Biden, David Chesnoff, Richard Schonfeld Organizations: Republicans, Justice Locations: Las Vegas

☆ Many Suicides in Prisons Could Have Been Averted, Justice Dept. Watchdog Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Glenn Thrush | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Dozens of inmates, including the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, have died needlessly in federal prisons as a result of lax supervision, access to contraband and poor monitoring of at-risk inmates, according to a report released on Thursday by the Justice Department’s watchdog. The Bureau of Prisons, responsible for about 155,000 inmates, routinely subjects prisoners to conditions that put them at heightened risk of self-harm, drug overdoses, accidents and violence, the department’s inspector general found after analyzing 344 deaths from 2013 to 2021 that had not been caused by illnesses. More than half of those deaths were suicides, and many of them could have been prevented if inmates had received appropriate mental health assessments or been housed with other prisoners in accordance with departmental guidelines instead of being left alone, like Mr. Epstein, the report concluded. The report “identified several operational and managerial deficiencies” that violated standing bureau policies, said Michael E. Horowitz, the inspector general, whose investigators previously concluded that Mr. Epstein’s death at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in 2019 was the result of gross negligence and inadequate staffing.

Persons: Jeffrey Epstein, Epstein, Michael E, Horowitz, Epstein’s Organizations: Justice, of Prisons, Metropolitan Correctional Center

☆ Ex-F.B.I. Informant Is Charged With Lying Over Bidens’ Role in Ukraine Business
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Glenn Thrush | More About Glenn Thrush | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The special counsel investigating Hunter Biden has charged a former F.B.I. informant with fabricating claims that President Biden and his son sought two $5 million bribes from a Ukrainian energy company, according to an indictment in a California federal court. The former informant, Alexander Smirnov, 43, was accused of falsely telling the F.B.I. The story Mr. Smirnov told investigators was part of a series of explosive and unsubstantiated claims by Republicans that the Bidens engaged in potentially criminal activity — allegations central to the party’s efforts to impeach the president. record that included the false allegation without naming Mr. Smirnov, or questioning its veracity.

Persons: Hunter Biden, Biden, Alexander Smirnov, Smirnov, Charles E, Grassley Organizations: Republican Locations: Ukrainian, California, Iowa

☆ Trump Calls His Classified Documents Case ‘Selective Persecution’
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Michael Gold | Glenn Thrush | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Former President Donald J. Trump, who faces a criminal case accusing him of illegally retaining classified documents, blasted on Friday a special counsel’s decision not to charge President Biden for his handling of classified material, accusing prosecutors of an unfair double standard. “You know, look, if he’s not going to be charged, that’s up to them. But then I should not be charged,” Mr. Trump said at an event in Harrisburg, Pa. “This is nothing more than selective persecution of Biden’s political opponent: me.”Mr. Trump’s speech, at a forum hosted by the National Rifle Association, were his first public remarks on the matter since the special counsel, Robert K. Hur, released a report stating that, although Mr. Biden had “willfully” retained and disclosed classified material after his vice presidency had ended, no criminal charges were warranted. Mr. Trump said he had cooperated “with the very hostile and unfriendly feds” more than Mr. Biden, a claim unsupported by any evidence. Mr. Hur’s report said the president fully cooperated with his investigation, while Mr. Trump has been accused of misleading the government for months over the classified documents in his possession.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Biden, he’s, Mr, Robert K, Hur, “, ”, Hur’s Organizations: National Rifle Association Locations: Harrisburg, Pa

☆ Release of Hur Report Underlines Perils of the Special Counsel’s Job
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Glenn Thrush | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The man Mr. Garland tapped for the job, Robert K. Hur, has not been quite as cautious. On Thursday, Mr. Hur, 50, a former Justice Department official in the Trump administration, dropped a 345-page political bomb into the middle of the 2024 campaign, the final report summing up his investigation. The Hur report underlines the challenges of deploying special counsels, which are intended to shield prosecutors from political meddling, but often result in the release of negative information about high-profile targets who have been cleared of criminal wrongdoing. It also showed the complicated balance of the job — navigating a polarized environment that leaves little option but to expansively explain the rationale for any decision. Mr. Hur is no stranger to high-wire investigations and legal conflict.

Persons: General Merrick B, Garland, Biden’s, Robert K, Hur, Trump, Biden, Donald J, Mr, Rod J, Rosenstein —, Rosenstein, Robert S, Mueller III Organizations: Justice Department Locations: Russia

She will technically win the contest anyway, as state election law says that “only votes cast for the named candidates shall be counted.” But the confounding result denied her even a symbolic victory. Mr. Trump needled Ms. Haley for her performance on social media, calling the result a “bad night” for her. In a Trump campaign email, Steven Cheung, a spokesman, called it “brutal” and contended that the Haley campaign acknowledged it had “intentionally disrespected the people of Nevada” by refusing to campaign there. Ms. Haley cast her party as mired in the same disorder that surrounds the man who has remade it in his image. Nevertheless, onstage in Los Angeles, Ms. Haley told the audience she wasn’t going anywhere.

Persons: Nikki Haley, Donald J, Trump, “, — he’s, ” Ms, Haley, ”, Ms, —, you’re, “ we’ve, Haley’s, Steven Cheung, Ronna McDaniel, Mr, Trump’s, “ Donald Trump Organizations: Republican, Hollywood Post, American Legion, United Nations, ”, Trump, Republican National Committee, Mr Locations: Los Angeles, Nevada’s, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Nevada, California

Mr. Trump needled Ms. Haley for her performance on social media, calling the result a “bad night” for her. In a Trump campaign email, Steven Cheung, a spokesman, called it “brutal” and contended that the Haley campaign acknowledged it had “intentionally disrespected the people of Nevada” by refusing to campaign there. Ms. Haley cast her party as mired in the same disorder that surrounds the man who has remade it in his image. It does not help that Mr. Trump’s allies have worked behind the scenes to skew primary and delegate rules to his advantage. Nevertheless, onstage in Los Angeles, Ms. Haley told the audience she wasn’t going anywhere.

Persons: Nikki Haley, Donald J, Trump, “, — he’s, ” Ms, Haley, ”, Ms, —, you’re, “ we’ve, Haley’s, Steven Cheung, Ronna McDaniel, Mr, Trump’s, “ Donald Trump Organizations: United Nations, Republican, Hollywood Post, American Legion, ”, Trump, Republican National Committee, Mr Locations: Los Angeles, Nevada’s, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Nevada, California

☆ China Is Targeting U.S. Infrastructure and Could ‘Wreak Chaos,’ F.B.I. Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Glenn Thrush | Adam Goldman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Christopher A. Wray, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, warned on Wednesday that China was ramping up an extensive hacking operation geared at taking down the United States’ power grid, oil pipelines and water systems in the event of a conflict over Taiwan. Mr. Wray, appearing before a House subcommittee on China, offered an alarming assessment of the Chinese Communist Party’s efforts. Its intent is to sow confusion, sap the United States’ will to fight and hamper the American military from deploying resources if the dispute over Taiwan, a major flashpoint between the two superpowers, escalates into a war, he added. Before his testimony, F.B.I. “China’s hackers are positioning on American infrastructure in preparation to wreak havoc and cause real-world harm to American citizens and communities, if or when China decides the time has come to strike,” said Mr. Wray, who pressed the committee to increase funding for the bureau.

Persons: Christopher A, Wray, ” Organizations: Federal Bureau of, Communist, Justice, Volt Typhoon Locations: China, United States, Taiwan, States, Beijing

☆ Appeals Court Revives Mexico’s Lawsuit Against Gunmakers
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Glenn Thrush | More About Glenn Thrush | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A federal appeals panel in Boston ruled on Monday that a $10 billion lawsuit filed by Mexico against U.S. gun manufacturers whose weapons are used by drug cartels can proceed, reversing a lower court that had dismissed the case. The decision, which is likely to be appealed, is one of the most significant setbacks for gunmakers since passage of a federal law nearly two decades ago that has provided immunity from lawsuits brought by the families of people killed and injured by their weapons. Mexico, in an attempt to challenge the reach of that law, sued six manufacturers in 2021, including Smith & Wesson, Glock and Ruger. It contended that the companies should be held liable for the trafficking of a half-million guns across the border a year, some of which were used in murders. In September 2022, a Federal District Court judge threw out the suit, ruling that the law prohibits legal action brought by foreign governments.

Persons: Glock Organizations: U.S, Smith & Wesson, Ruger, Federal Locations: Boston, Mexico

A near-total breakdown in policing protocols hindered the response to the 2022 school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, that left 21 people dead — and the refusal to rapidly confront the killer needlessly cost lives, the Justice Department concluded on Thursday after a nearly two-year investigation. The department blamed “cascading failures of leadership, decision-making, tactics, policy and training” for the delayed and passive law enforcement response that allowed an 18-year-old gunman with a semiautomatic rifle to remain inside a pair of connected fourth grade classrooms at Robb Elementary School for 77 minutes before he was confronted and killed. The “most significant failure,” investigators concluded, was the decision by local police officials to classify the incident as a barricaded standoff rather than an “active-shooter” scenario, which would have demanded instant and aggressive action. Almost all of the officials in charge that day have already been fired or have retired. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland, speaking to reporters in Uvalde, said that the officers who converged on the school within minutes of the attack intended to storm the classrooms, but were told to stand down.

Persons: General Merrick B, Garland Organizations: Justice, Robb Elementary School Locations: Uvalde , Texas, Uvalde

☆ Hunter Biden Charged With Evading Taxes on Millions From Foreign Firms
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-07 | by ( Glenn Thrush | Michael S. Schmidt | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A federal grand jury charged Hunter Biden on Thursday with a scheme to evade federal taxes on millions in income from foreign businesses, the second indictment against him this year and a major new development in a case Republicans have made the cornerstone of a possible impeachment of President Biden. Mr. Biden, the president’s son, faces three counts each of evasion of a tax assessment, failure to file and pay taxes, and filing a false or fraudulent tax return, according to the 56-page indictment — a withering play-by-play of personal indulgence with potentially enormous political costs for his father. But the agreement collapsed, and in September, he was indicted in Delaware on three charges stemming from his illegal purchase of a handgun in 2018, a period when he used drugs heavily and was prohibited from owning a firearm. The tax charges have always been the more serious element of the inquiry by the special counsel, David C. Weiss, who began investigating the president’s son five years ago as the Trump-appointed U.S. attorney for Delaware. Mr. Weiss was retained when President Biden took office in 2021.

Persons: Hunter Biden, Biden, Mr, David C, Weiss Organizations: Trump Locations: California, Delaware

Federal prosecutors said on Monday that a retired State Department official worked for decades as a secret agent for Cuba, and told an undercover F.B.I. agent that the United States was “the enemy.”In a criminal complaint filed in federal court in Miami, the prosecutors said that the diplomat, Manuel Rocha, had secretly aided Cuba’s “clandestine intelligence-gathering mission against the United States” since 1981 as he rose undetected through the ranks of the diplomatic corps and the National Security Council. Mr. Rocha, 73, appeared to have met with handlers from Cuba’s premier spy agency as recently as 2017, prosecutors said, and boasted that his 40 years of spying on behalf of the communist government in Havana had “strengthened the revolution immensely.”For more than two decades, Mr. Rocha handled matters related to Latin America in a series of roles at the State Department under presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, including a stint as ambassador to Bolivia from 2000 to 2002. More recently, Mr. Rocha, a native of Colombia who grew up in New York, served as an adviser to the U.S. military command responsible for Cuba.

Persons: Manuel Rocha, Cuba’s, . Rocha, “, Rocha, Bill Clinton, George W, Bush Organizations: State Department, United, National Security Locations: Cuba, United States, Miami, Havana, America, Bolivia, Colombia, New York

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