Who is Joe Ziegler? IRS whistleblower in Hunter Biden case felt 'handcuffed' throughout 5-year investigation
WASHINGTON, DC: After months of speculation and secrecy, the identity of 'Whistleblower X,' the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) whistleblower who claimed that the federal legal system abused its power during the criminal investigation into President Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden, has been revealed to be Special Agent Joseph Ziegler. As the second IRS employee to come forward with allegations regarding the investigation, Ziegler has shed light on the complexities and challenges he faced during the five-year probe.
Who is Joe Ziegler?
Special Agent Joseph Ziegler, a 13-year veteran of the IRS, served as the main case agent in the Hunter Biden investigation and reportedly handled around "95% of the tax evidence" involved in the case. In an interview with CBS News, Ziegler expressed his frustration, stating that he "felt handcuffed" during the investigation, as he was allegedly blocked from pursuing leads that he believed might implicate President Joe Biden. He explained, "When you're prevented from going down certain roads, I guess I don't know what could have been found if we were not hamstrung or not handcuffed."
Initially known as 'Whistleblower X,' Ziegler's identity was revealed at the insistence of lawmakers who called him to testify before a House committee to describe his role in the investigation into Hunter Biden. As the main IRS case agent, Ziegler collaborated with his supervisor, Gary Shapley, and both believe that the evidence they uncovered supported both felony and misdemeanor tax charges against Hunter Biden. Despite being a Democrat, Ziegler revealed that he did not vote in the last presidential election to avoid any appearance of bias, given the sensitive nature of his work. He said, "I'm a Democrat. In the last presidential election, I actually did not vote. I thought it would be irresponsible of me to do so because I didn't wanna show bias one way or the other."
The prosecution's decision
Ziegler and Shapley's investigation spanned both the Trump and Biden administrations. They allege that evidence collected pointed to Hunter Biden improperly claiming business deductions for various personal expenses, including his children's college tuition, luxury hotel stays, payments to escorts, and payments to no-show employees. In 2021, Ziegler drafted a memorandum recommending prosecutors charge Hunter Biden with multiple felonies and misdemeanors. He stated, "In August of 2022, we had a phone call with all of the assigned prosecutors, and they had said that all four of them were recommending the approval of felony and misdemeanor tax charges."
However, the case took a different turn as the U.S. Attorney for Delaware, David Weiss, expressed concerns about charging Hunter Biden with certain felonies. He cited potential jury sympathy towards the First Son's substance abuse issues and the death of his brother, Beau Biden. Weiss believed these factors could affect the jury's opinion. Ziegler recalled, "David said to us… 'I'm getting some concern from the Department of Justice Tax Division, the evidence that might come in related to his substance abuse and the death of his brother, Beau Biden, those might affect the jury's opinion.'"
Eventually, the case resulted in a plea deal where Hunter Biden agreed to plead guilty to two misdemeanor tax counts and a felony gun charge. The felony charge would be dismissed if he complied with certain conditions. Nevertheless, Ziegler and Shapley remain concerned and confused about the decision not to pursue more severe tax felony charges, raising questions about potential interference by the Biden Justice Department.
Challenges faced during the investigation
Ziegler cited several challenges he encountered during the investigation. For instance, he expressed his desire for prosecutors to obtain a search warrant to access a Virginia storage unit to search for potential business records, but this request was reportedly declined. He also claimed that efforts to interview Hunter Biden's adult children about tax payments were hampered by prosecutors, who feared that such requests could lead to complications. Ziegler said, "Anytime we potentially wanted to go down the road of asking questions related to the president, it was 'That's gonna take too much approvals. We can't ask those questions.'"
One notable instance was when Ziegler attempted to obtain location data to determine whether Joe Biden was present when his son sent a WhatsApp message to a Chinese businessman. In the message, Hunter Biden appeared to pressure the businessman to fulfill a commitment, mentioning his father. However, Ziegler stated that he was unable to confirm whether the president and his son were together when the message was sent.
According to both IRS agents, Ziegler and Shapley, they were informed that prosecutors in Delaware were prohibited from bringing charges against Hunter Biden in other jurisdictions, including California and Washington, DC. Additionally, Ziegler stated that Weiss told him that he was denied special counsel status by the Justice Department. Ziegler explained that when they sought assistance from the District of Columbia (DC), they were met with resistance. "DC said, 'No, we are not gonna assist you with bringing charges in our district. And we don't think you should bring these charges forward in our district,'" Ziegler told the outlet.
'I don't wish this upon anyone'
Ziegler acknowledged that he anticipated additional scrutiny when investigating the son of a president but was disappointed by the unmet requests, stating, "There would be a point to where it would be like, 'Well, let's think about it. Let's put that on the back burner.' And it would now move down to item number 50." He stressed the importance of equal treatment under the law, saying, "At the end of the day, it's a matter of are we treating everyone the same? Are we treating all taxpayers the same? And in this case, no, I don't think so."
Despite the difficulties, Ziegler complied with Congress's request to come forward publicly and testify. His revelations emphasized the significance of seeking justice impartially. Ziegler declared, "I do this with a heavy heart. This is awful. It's not a fun experience to go through this. I don't wish this upon anyone."