Friday 7 October 2022 04:49 PM Republican James Comer: Federal charges for Hunter are just 'tip of the iceberg' trends now
A SMOKING GUN
On October 12, 2018 Hunter bought a .38 caliber handgun from StarQuest Shooters & Survival Supply in Wilmington, Delaware.
The federally required Firearm Transaction Record for the purchase, obtained by DailyMail.com, asks: 'Are you an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance?'
Hunter checked the box: 'No'.
But in his memoir, Beautiful Things, he admitted to his continued 'full-blown addiction' at the time – and in doing so, appeared to admit to the felony of lying on the firearm form.
'I had returned [to the East Coast] that fall of 2018, after my most recent relapse in California, with the hope of getting clean through a new therapy and reconciling with Hallie. Neither happened,' he wrote in the 2021 autobiography.
He said he would go for regular ketamine therapy sessions as part of his rehab treatment but continued to smoke crack throughout.
Hunter bought the .38 revolver from Starquest Shooters in Delaware on October 12, 2018
It was later revealed Hunter allegedly lied on a firearm report (above) required for the transaction. A photo of the form shows the first son allegedly answered 'no' when asked if he was an 'unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance'
Hunter barely had the gun for a two weeks when a dangerous incident occurred. His lover and brother's widow Hallie Biden found it in his truck on October 23 and threw it in a trash can outside local grocery store Janssens, opposite a high school.
'The therapy's results were disastrous,' he wrote. 'I backslid. I did exactly what I'd come to Massachusetts to stop doing. I'd stay clean for a week, break away from the center to meet a connection I found in Rhode Island, smoke up, then return.
'One thing I did remarkably well during that time was fool people about whether or not I was using. Between trips up there, I even bought clean urine from a dealer in New York to pass drug tests.
'I doubt much good comes from doing ketamine while you're on crack.'
A copy of the Firearms Transaction Record and a receipt for the purchase was first obtained by news site Politico last year.
Lying on gun forms is a felony, punishable by a maximum 10 years prison and a $250,000 fine.
In March 2021 a bombshell report published by Politico revealed Hunter's sister-in-law and one-time girlfriend Hallie had found the gun in his car, wrapped it in a plastic bag, and put it in a trash can outside Janssen's Market (pictured) in Wilmington, Delaware in October 2018, because she feared he would use it to kill himself
However, not all cases are prosecuted. Of the 478 referrals for 'lying and buying' the Justice Department received in 2018, charges were filed for 298 cases, about 60%.
Hunter barely had the gun for a two weeks when a dangerous incident occurred.
His lover and brother's widow Hallie Biden found it in his truck on October 23 and threw it in a trash can outside local grocery store Janssens, opposite a high school.
It was discovered by a homeless man rifling through the trash. Local police as well as the FBI were called.
Hunter argued about the incident with Hallie in panicked text messages in the following days.
'The f***ing FBI Hallie. It's hard to believe anyone is that stupid // so what's my fault here Hallie that you speak of. Owning a gun that's in a locked car hidden on another property?,' he wrote.
'It was open unlocked and windows down and the kids search your car,' Hallie replied. 'I'm scared you would use it hunt … I'm scared for your life hunt.'
Despite the Bidens not having Secret Service protection at the time, USSS agents reportedly showed up and asked the gun store owner, Ron Palmieri, to hand over purchase documents.
Suspecting the case would be covered up, Palmieri refused and instead later gave his papers to agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, according to a March 2021 Politico report.
In texts obtained by DailyMail.com, Hunter messaged his therapist to tell him about the ordeal. 'She stole the gun out of my truck lock box and threw in a garbage can full to the top at Jansens. Then told me it was my problem to deal with,' Hunter wrote
Hunter argued about the incident with Hallie in panicked text messages in the following days. 'The f***ing FBI Hallie. It's hard to believe anyone is that stupid // so what's my fault here Hallie that you speak of. Owning a gun that's in a locked car hidden on another property?,' he wrote. 'It was open unlocked and windows down and the kids search your car,' Hallie replied. 'I'm scared you would use it hunt … I'm scared for your life hunt'
The Secret Service has denied any involvement. But in texts from Hunter's laptop he also claimed they had a role in the debacle.
'She stole the gun out of my truck lock box and threw in a garbage can full to the top at Jansens. Then told me it was my problem to deal with,' Hunter wrote in a three-way text message with Hallie and his therapist in January 2019.
'Then when the police the FBI the secret service came on the scene she said she took it from me because she was scared I would harm myself due to my drug and alcohol problem and our volatile relationship and that she was afraid for the kids.'
Transparency organization Judicial Watch is currently suing the Secret Service over its refusal to hand over records relating to the incident under the Freedom of Information Act.
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