(USNewsMag.com) – After he was released from jail by another judge and re-arrested, a judge in Los Angeles, California, ruled that former FBI informant Alexander Smirnov, 43, must remain jailed until his trial.
In his ruling that Smirnov must remain behind bars, U.S. District Judge Otis Wright II said he could not guarantee that Smirnov would not flee the country before his trial.
Smirnov is charged with allegedly lying about a multimillion-dollar bribery scheme involving the Biden family and their foreign business dealings. Smirnov, who had been an FBI informant for over a decade, first made the allegations about the Biden family bribery scheme in June 2020. In court documents, prosecutors also accuse Smirnov of “actively peddling new lies,” which could have an impact on the November election.
On February 14th, Smirnov pleaded not guilty to charges of lying to his FBI handler about Hunter Biden and President Joe Biden receiving $5 million each from a Ukrainian energy company. On February 20th, he was released in Nevada by U.S. magistrate judge Daniel Albregts under the conditions he stayed in the area, surrendered his passport, and wore a GPS monitor.
Wright ordered Smirnov, who holds dual Israeli and U.S. citizenship, to be re-arrested, writing that his lawyers’ efforts to free him from jail before his trial were “likely to facilitate” his fleeing “from the United States.” Smirnov was re-arrested on February 22nd while meeting with his attorneys in Las Vegas.
Prosecutor Leo Wise argued if Smirnov was released from jail that he could not be trusted to be honest about his whereabouts if released from jail, noting that he told investigators another false story about Hunter Biden in September. Prosecutors also alleged Smirnov has contacts with officials associated with Russian intelligence.
Smirnov’s attorneys argued that he has strong ties to the U.S. and has no criminal history. The defense said they would pay for 24/7 private security and, for the duration of the trial, rent Smirnov an apartment in Los Angeles. However, Wright dismissed the efforts by the defense.
His attorney, David Chesnoff, stated that Smirnov “intends to vigorously defend these allegations.”
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