A top Biden family business associate is negotiating an interview with House investigators about foreign deals that revolved around then-Vice President Biden.
Devon Archer, a friend and former business partner of President Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, is in discussions to cooperate with the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, a GOP source told The Washington Times. No date has been agreed to.
The committee wants Archer to provide information about his transactions with Russian billionaire Elena Baturina, who sent a $3.5 million payment to a company linked to both Archer and Hunter Biden.
Archer was recently convicted of swindling millions of dollars from the Wakpamni tribe of South Dakota and in June lost an appeal to have the conviction thrown out, which means he may soon have to begin serving a sentence of one year plus a day in prison.
Congressional investigators first want to talk to Archer about his business ties to the Bidens.
House Oversight Chairman James Comer, Kentucky Republican, said Archer has “significant information” about business deals that enabled Biden family members to pocket millions of dollars. Archer could also provide a critical link to Joe Biden’s involvement in the scheme.
“There is no doubt that Devon Archer should be a treasure trove of information,” said Sen. Ron Johnson, a Wisconsin Republican. Mr. Johnson, along with Sen. Chuck Grassley have been investigating Archer and several other associates who worked with Hunter Biden on foreign business deals dating back to Joe Biden’s term as vice president.
Among the transactions involving Archer is Ms. Baturina’s $3.5 million wire transfer to Rosemont Seneca Thornton, a company linked to Archer and Hunter Biden.
Ms. Baturina, the widow of former Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, funneled an additional tens of millions of dollars into companies tied to Hunter Biden and Archer for real estate investments in the U.S., according to the Kazakhstani Initiative on Asset Recovery, an anti-corruption group.
The reason Ms. Baturnina made the $3.5 million wire transfer to Rosemont Seneca Thornton is unknown, House investigators said, but it was described as a “consultancy fee.”
The panel subpoenaed Archer for all information related to his transactions with Ms. Baturina and Rosemont Seneca Thornton.
Archer is believed to be one of the most critical witnesses in the House Oversight probe because he was closely involved in lucrative Biden family business deals involving Ukraine, Russia and China, according to House and Senate investigators.
Archer could also provide a direct link between the foreign business deals and President Biden, who has denied any involvement or knowledge in the transactions.
Archer met with then-Vice President Biden in the White House in April 2014, just a few days before Mr. Biden was dispatched to Ukraine to offer U.S. assistance with energy production and other economic aid.
Shortly after Mr. Biden’s Ukraine trip, Archer was hired to the board of Burisma, a Ukrainian energy firm. Hunter Biden was also hired to the Burisma board just a few weeks after Archer.
The two were paid huge salaries in what has been described by an FBI informant as a scheme to get Mr. Biden to fire a Ukrainian prosecutor who was investigating the energy firm for corruption.
The alleged bribery scheme was revealed in an FBI memo obtained last week by the House Oversight panel.
A top executive for Burisma, believed by Congressional investigators to be company president Mykola Zlochevsky, told a paid FBI informant he bribed Mr. Biden with a $5 million payment between 2015 and 2016 in a bid to get Mr. Biden to force out prosecutor Viktor Shokin, who was investigating Burisma.
“We know he wanted to be rehabilitated,” Mr. Johnson said of the Burisma executive. “He wanted a U.S. visa. He wanted to be able to get involved in oil and gas leases associated with the U.S. company. So that was the whole point.”
According to Mr. Grassley, Iowa Republican, the FBI memo redacted Mr. Zlochevsky’s claim that he has audio recordings of phone calls between him and both Mr. Biden and Hunter Biden.
Republicans believe Mr. Biden’s presidency has been compromised by the deals.
Democrats say the GOP claims of influence peddling are based on Russian disinformation and are not backed up by any hard evidence.
“Republicans have absolutely zero evidence of any wrongdoing by President Biden,” Rep. Dan Goldman, a New York Democrat who served as the top aide in President Trump’s first impeachment hearing. “But that hasn’t stopped them from trafficking in debunked allegations funneled to them by Russian intelligence officials.”
Hunter Biden’s lawyer, George Mesires, told CNN that Hunter Biden was not a co-owner with Archer of Rosemont Seneca Thornton and did not receive any of the $3.5 million.
But GOP investigators believe he’s tied to the company.
Hunter Biden co-founded Rosemont Seneca Partners in 2009 with Archer and Christopher Heinz, stepson of President Biden’s climate envoy John Kerry. The Financial Times reported Rosemont Seneca Thornton is “a consortium” made up of Rosemont Seneca Partners and the Massachusetts-based Thornton Group, which showed images of Hunter Biden attending company events on its website.
A lawyer for Devon Archer did not respond to a request for comment from The Times.
• Susan Ferrechio can be reached at sferrechio@washingtontimes.com.