Biden's Brother Jim Accused of Exploiting Family Name in $140 Million Debt Settlement, Court Documents Allege
Court documents have exposed another family scandal, suggesting that President Joe Biden's brother, Jim, allegedly leveraged his family name and political connections to broker lucrative deals with Iraq and Saudi Arabia. The documents indicate that Jim negotiated a 2012 deal on behalf of American company Hill International, aiming to persuade the Saudis to settle a $140 million outstanding debt, and that the current president might have been aware of the influence-peddling scheme, as reported by RadarOnline.com.
According to the court papers, Jim admitted to former U.S. Treasury agent and private investigator Thomas Sullivan that his "position and relationship" with Joe, then Barack Obama's vice president, were the reasons the company hired him. "Of course, the [Biden] name didn't hurt," said Jim, 73. However, he has denied the allegations. "This entire story is yet another attempt to smear Jim Biden," his representative said in a statement.
Hill CEO Irvin Richter reportedly revealed he "selected Biden" because Saudi Arabia "would not dare stiff the brother of the vice president, who would be instrumental to the deal." The unpaid debt dates back to the 1980s when Hill built desalination plants in Saudi Arabia.
Court documents suggest that Jim successfully negotiated a settlement in which the Saudis paid back $100 million and promised lucrative future contracts. However, law firm Lankford & Reed, which spent years attempting to recover the debt, claims it was denied a promised 40% payout.
This is not the first time Jim Biden's name has been linked to the family's efforts to profit from Joe's political standing. Last year, it was revealed that Jim received $65,000 monthly payments from Chinese oil and gas conglomerate CEFC to assist it in securing energy deals, a matter under investigation by federal prosecutors.
Jim also reportedly aided Hill in securing a 2010 deal to construct 100,000 affordable housing units in Iraq while Joe was Obama's point man. Court documents suggest that Joe was likely aware of his brother's alleged activities. According to an affidavit filed by Sullivan, Jim's wife, Sara, admitted that during a July 6, 2017, meeting, Jim and Joe "told each other everything."
A political source has revealed that these allegations may bolster Republican-controlled House of Representatives inquiries into the Biden family. "It's getting harder for Joe to say he knew nothing about what his relatives were doing," the insider said.