The 2020 transition team of then-President Elect Joe Biden was informed in advance of the FBI planning an interview of the president’s son, Hunter Biden, according to a whistleblower—the former FBI supervisor responsible for opening the bureau’s investigation into Mr. Biden.
FBI and IRS agents planned the interview for Dec. 8, 2020, but were told that morning to stand down, the whistleblower told the House Oversight Committee in a July 17 interview. The committee released the interview transcript on Aug. 14 (pdf).
The early tip-off was previously revealed by former IRS investigator-turned-whistleblower Gary Shapley, who oversaw the investigation on the IRS side. The agencies joined their probes in April 2020, said the FBI whistleblower, who remains anonymous.
He said he opened the investigation into Mr. Biden in 2019 and around 2019–2020, he became the most senior supervisor in the FBI Wilmington Field Office
“The initial plan was to make approaches of multiple witnesses, to include subject Hunter Biden, on December 8th,” the whistleblower said, according to the transcript.
At that time, Mr. Biden was already under Secret Service protection and so the agents decided the Secret Service needed to be notified to prevent any confusion or misunderstanding.
“The initial plan was to have the local field office of the Secret Service be notified the morning of [Dec. 8, 2020,] to diminish opportunities for anybody else to be notified,” the whistleblower said.
“I was working with my management on that, as well as … our FBI headquarters.”
On the evening of Dec. 7, he remembers there was a conference call with his superiors during which he was informed that FBI headquarters informed not just the local Secret Service office, but also the Secret Service Headquarters and another party.
Upon learning of Mr. Shapley’s testimony, he said, he remembered who the other party was—the “transition,” which he understood to be the Biden transition team.
“I remember that’s why I was upset that evening, that somebody beyond Secret Service was notified,” he said.
He said he understood why FBI headquarters felt the need to inform the Secret Service headquarters, but not the transition team.
“I felt it was people that did not need to know about our intent,” he said.
By Petr Svab
