The Department of Justice on Thursday filed new criminal charges against Hunter Biden, accusing him of failing to pay $1.4 million (£1.1 million) in taxes while spending millions of dollars on a lavish lifestyle.

Mr Biden, the son of the US president, was hit with three felony and six misdemeanour tax offences, according to an indictment filed in US District Court in Central California.

He faces up to 17 years in prison if convicted on the charges. The Justice Department said its investigation into Mr Biden is ongoing.

“The defendant 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,” the indictment read.

Defendant ‘spent millions on an extravagant lifestyle’

It added that he had “spent millions of dollars on an extravagant lifestyle rather than paying his tax bills.”

A spokesperson for Special Counsel David Weiss and a lawyer for Mr Biden did not immediately reply to requests for comment.

Thursday’s indictment stated that Mr Biden had “earned handsomely” while serving on the boards of a Ukrainian industrial conglomerate and a Chinese private equity fund.

But his expenditures increased as his income increased, according to the charges.

In 2018 alone, the indictment read, Mr Biden “spent more than $1.8 million, including approximately $772,000 in cash withdrawals, approximately $383,000 in payments to women, approximately $151,000 in clothing and accessories” among other expenditures.

The indictment added: “The defendant did not use any of these funds to pay his taxes in 2018.”

Drug use charges

Mr Biden in October pleaded not guilty to charges in Delaware that he lied about his drug use while buying a handgun, in the first criminal prosecution of a sitting US president’s child.

Mr Weiss brought those charges against him after an earlier proposed plea deal unravelled under questioning from a judge. The special counsel is still investigating whether he can be charged for tax law violations.

The special counsel investigating Mr Biden has employed a grand jury in Los Angeles to seek documents and possible testimony from multiple witnesses as part of the federal investigation of his business dealings, CNN reported last month.