LOS ANGELES, UNITED STATES – Hunter Biden was indicted late Thursday on multiple counts of tax evasion. For the second time this year, President Joe Biden’s troubled son has been indicted by a special counsel investigating his personal and business dealings.

Hunter Biden “engaged in a four-year scheme to avoid paying at least $1.4 million in self-assessed federal taxes that he owed for tax years 2016 through 2019,” special counsel David Weiss said in the 56-page indictment, which was filed in the US District Court of California.

Biden was charged with nine counts of failure to file and pay taxes, tax evasion and filing false tax returns, according to the indictment.

The new charges further embarrass Joe Biden as he wages a tough re-election fight and fends off a Republican attempt to impeach him on the grounds that he profited from his son’s foreign business dealings.

The previous counts accuse the younger Biden of lying about his drug use on a federal application to purchase a gun.

The new charges mean Hunter Biden could theoretically face trial twice next year as his father almost certainly faces Donald Trump in the presidential race.

President Biden has insisted he is standing by his son despite his problematic past behavior.

The new indictment alleges that Hunter Biden earned more than $7 million from 2016 to 2020 and used that money for a lavish lifestyle.

“The defendant spent millions of dollars on an extravagant lifestyle while choosing not to pay taxes,” the indictment says.

It added: “Between 2016 and October 15, 2020, the defendant spent this money on drugs, escorts and girlfriends, luxury hotels and rental properties, exotic cars, clothing and other items of a personal nature, in short, everything except his taxes.” “

Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty this year to three felony charges related to his purchase of a .38-caliber Colt Cobra revolver in 2018, when he said he was a drug addict.

He is accused of illegally possessing the pistol and two counts of making false statements by claiming on the forms required to purchase the weapon that he had not used drugs at the time.

Republicans have launched an impeachment inquiry in Congress over an alleged criminal conspiracy by the Biden family, but have offered no evidence that the president did anything wrong.

In July, a deal between Hunter Biden and District Attorney Weiss collapsed – which would have dropped the weapons charges while Biden pleaded guilty to two tax charges and avoided prison time.

Despite the Republican allegations, Hunter Biden has not been accused of any crimes related to his foreign dealings.

Hunter Biden is a Yale-educated lawyer and lobbyist turned artist, but his life is marred by alcoholism and crack cocaine addiction.