The US Department of Justice filed new criminal charges against President Joe Biden's son, Hunter, accusing him of failing to pay $1.4m (€1.2m) in taxes while spending millions of dollars on a lavish lifestyle.
The Justice Department filed three felony and six misdemeanour tax offences against Hunter Biden, according to an indictment filed in US District Court, Central District of California.
The 53-year-old faces up to 17 years in prison if convicted. The Justice Department said its investigation into Mr Biden is ongoing.
"The defendant engaged in a four-year scheme to not pay at least $1.4m in self-assessed federal taxes he owed for tax years 2016 through 2019," the indictment read.
It added that he had instead spent huge sums "on drugs, escorts and girlfriends, luxury hotels and rental properties, exotic cars, clothing, and other items of a personal nature," including over $70,000 (€64,000) on drug rehabilitation.
A lawyer for Mr Biden did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The White House declined to comment. It was not clear when Mr Biden would appear in court.
The indictment said Mr Biden "earned handsomely" while serving on the boards of Burisma, a Ukrainian industrial conglomerate, and a Chinese private equity fund.
Prosecutors said that between 2016 and October 2020, he received more than $7m in total gross income.
That included nearly $2.3m from his position on the board of directors of Burisma between 2016 and 2019, the filing said.
Mr Biden's affiliation with Burisma has been the focus of years of attacks from Republican politicians who have accused him of leveraging his family name to make money overseas.
"The defendant had a legal obligation to pay taxes on all his income, including income earned in Ukraine from his service on Burisma's board, fees generated by deal-making with the Chinese private equity fund, as well as income derived from his work as a lawyer and other sources," the indictment said.
Adding to Mr Biden's income was work for CEFC China Energy Co Ltd, a Chinese energy conglomerate.
As Mr Biden's income increased, so did his spending, according to the filing.
In 2018 alone, the indictment read, Mr Biden "spent more than $1.8m, including approximately $772,000 in cash withdrawals, approximately $383,000 in payments to women, approximately $151,000 in clothing and accessories".
The indictment added: "The defendant did not use any of these funds to pay his taxes in 2018."
In October Mr Biden 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.
US Special Counsel David Weiss, who is leading the probe into Hunter Biden, was appointed Delaware US attorney by former US president Donald Trump.
He was made special counsel by Attorney General Merrick Garland in August.
He brought charges in Delaware against Mr Biden after the unraveling of an earlier proposed plea deal that had called for him to plead guilty to two misdemeanour tax charges for failing to pay taxes in 2017 and 2018, an agreement which likely would have allowed him to avoid prison.
US District Judge Maryellen Noreika rejected the proposed plea deal in July, raising concerns over its legality and the scope of immunity it offered.
Mr Trump, the leading contender to be the Republican Party's nominee in next year's presidential election, said the plea deal amounted to favourable treatment for the president's son.
