U.S. Attorney for Central California E. Martin Estrada told Congress that the prosecutor leading the probe into Hunter Biden had full authority to pursue criminal tax charges in California against the president's son, but declined any partnership with his office, according to records reviewed by CBS News that have not been publicly released.
Estrada's closed-door testimony partially contradicts claims made by IRS whistleblower and supervisory special agent Gary Shapley that David Weiss, the U.S. attorney for Delaware who has since been named special counsel in the Hunter Biden investigation, had stated in an October 2022 meeting that he was "not the deciding person" to bring charges in the case.
"My understanding was that Mr. Weiss had been doing this investigation for several years, was leading the investigation, and would bring charges if he believed they were appropriate," Estrada told the GOP-led House Judiciary Committee, according to the transcript of the closed-door interview.
Two FBI officials assigned to the Hunter Biden investigation also told the committee earlier this year that they did not recall Weiss telling investigators he did not have authority to push the case forward himself.
Referencing limited resources, Estrada, who was appointed by President Biden to be one of California's U.S. attorneys, said he declined requests made by Weiss, to partner with his office as co-counsel in the prosecution. But he did offer administrative resources and office space to...
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