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The FBI informant who set off a firestorm by alleging that Joe and Hunter Biden took $10 million in bribes has been released from prison on medical furlough, his attorney tells The Post.
Alexander Smirnov pleaded guilty in December and received a six-year prison sentence for fabricating the story about the then-US president as well as a separate charge of tax evasion.
“Since Mr. Smirnov’s arrest, he has required crucial eye surgery which was denied to him for an extended period of time, which only exacerbated an already serious condition,” his lawyer David Chesnoff said.
“We appreciate the Bureau of Prisons recognizing the incredibly serious nature of his condition and agreeing to allow him to receive the necessary and lengthy procedures he is receiving.”
Smirnov, 45, had been incarcerated at a federal facility in Los Angeles and Chesnoff did not share his precise release date.
A federal judge refused to free Smirnov, whose team says he is now legally blind, in May, saying he posed a flight risk.
Smirnov’s tip about the Bidens involved the Ukraine-based energy company Burisma, which paid Hunter Biden a salary of up to $1 million to serve on its board as his then-VP dad led the Obama administration’s policy toward Kyiv.
The allegation, aired by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), ultimately undermined the House Republican case to impeach then-President Biden for his many documented interactions with his son Hunter and brother James Biden’s foreign patrons in countries such as China, Kazakhstan and Ukraine.
Health-related releases from prison typically last 30 days but can be extended.
Lawyers for Smirnov intend to continue to seek medical furloughs.
