IRS whistleblowers declare 'complete vindication' after Hunter Biden indictment

In the wake of Hunter Biden's latest indictment in California, IRS whistleblowers Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler have declared the development a vindication of their efforts.

Special counsel David Weiss on Thursday indicted the first son on a litany of charges, alleging that he "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, from in or about January 2017 through in or about October 15, 2020, and to evade the assessment of taxes for tax year 2018 when he filed false returns in or about February 2020."

Shapley and Ziegler took the development to assert that the evidence had long supported their recommendations of charges against Hunter Biden and declared it a "complete vindication."

"Eight months ago we did something ordinary people don't do: we risked our careers and reputations to bring the truth out of the shadow and into the light. We were moved solely by our consciences, yet faced continual attacks," the pair said in a statement. "Nevertheless, in the face of all odds, we never wavered from what we shared with Congress."

"Today's indictment is a complete vindication of our thorough investigation, and underscores the wide agreement by investigators and prosecutors that the evidence supported charges against Hunter Biden. Yet as we have stated, this is much bigger than our investigation or any one individual: it's about equal treatment of taxpayers under the law," they concluded.

Weiss, since 2018, had conducted an investigation into Hunter Biden in his capacity as the U.S. Attorney for Delaware. Shapley and Ziegler, both of whom worked on the case, came forward earlier this year to allege that Biden-appointed officials had worked to stifle the probe and prevent the bringing of the most severe charges against Hunter Biden.

Amid public scrutiny of the case, a proposed plea deal fell apart and Attorney General Merrick Garland subsequently named Weiss special counsel to continue his investigation. He has since separately charged Hunter with a gun violation, to which Biden has pleaded not guilty.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter.