President Donald Trump's latest pardon recipient shares deep ties with Hunter Biden's controversial business dealings and subsequent investigations into the Biden family.
According to the New York Post, Trump signed a pardon Tuesday for Devon Archer, Hunter Biden's former business partner, who was previously convicted of defrauding a Native American tribe, citing unfair treatment in the case.
The pardon comes after Archer provided crucial testimony to House Republicans investigating President Joe Biden's alleged involvement in his family's foreign business activities. Archer, who faced prison time for his role in a $60 million fraudulent bond scheme, served as a key witness in the impeachment inquiry against the former president.
Archer's relationship with the Biden family extended beyond mere business partnerships. He appeared in numerous meetings and interactions with Joe Biden, including approximately 20 speaker-phone calls during business discussions. The former business partner detailed multiple instances where the elder Biden met with his son's foreign associates.
These meetings included two separate dinners at Washington DC's Cafe Milano in 2014 and 2015, attended by various Eastern European and Central Asian business figures. Hunter Biden later confirmed these gatherings, despite his father's 2020 campaign previously denying their occurrence.
Archer's testimony revealed that Hunter Biden made a significant call to "DC" during a December 2015 meeting in Dubai with Burisma owner Mykola Zlochevsky and adviser Vadym Pozharskyi. This communication occurred while Joe Biden was working to remove Ukrainian prosecutor-general Viktor Shokin.
Trump spoke about his decision to pardon Archer, stating:
I think he was treated very unfairly. And I looked at the record, studied the record, and he was a victim of a crime, as far as I'm concerned. So we're going to undo that.
The pardon announcement followed a meeting between Trump and Archer at the NCAA wrestling championships in Philadelphia on Saturday. The president had previously informed the New York Post about his intentions to grant Archer a full pardon.
Archer expressed gratitude for the presidential pardon. In his statement, he said:
I want to extend my deepest thanks to President Trump. I am grateful to the president for recognizing that I was the victim of a convoluted lawfare effort intended to destroy and silence me. Like so many people, my life was devastated by the Biden family's selfish disregard for the truth and for the peace of mind and happiness of others.
Archer's legal troubles stemmed from his involvement with Burnham Financial Group, where he and two other executives were found guilty of conspiracy to commit securities fraud. The case involved selling fraudulent bonds worth over $60 million to an Oglala Sioux entity in South Dakota.
The conviction initially faced several legal challenges, including a rare overturning by Manhattan US District Judge Ronnie Abrams in November 2018. However, appeals judges later reinstated the conviction, which the Supreme Court ultimately upheld last year.
Hunter Biden, who served as vice chairman of Burnham and earned up to $200,000, was not charged in the case. The president's son received a full pardon from his father shortly before leaving office.
Devon Archer's pardon marks a significant development in the ongoing investigation into Biden family business dealings and their implications. The former business partner, convicted of defrauding a Native American tribe through a complex bond scheme, provided crucial testimony to House Republicans investigating Joe Biden's alleged involvement in foreign business activities. The presidential pardon allows Archer to avoid prison time, millions in forfeitures, and restitution payments. He plans to focus on his family and professional life while working on a book about his experiences, which will be published by Post Hill, the same publisher that released "Laptop From Hell" by Miranda Devine.
