Burisma Exec Claims He Paid Joe, Hunter Biden $5 Million; Grassley Alleges Audio Recordings: Report

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said that an executive for Burisma claimed that he paid Joe Biden and his son Hunter $5 million while the former was still vice president under Barack Obama's administration, according to a report.

Speaking from the Senate floor Monday, Grassley — who cited a redacted FBI-generated FD-1023 form — said a Burisma executive revealed that he paid Joe and Hunter "$5 million each" as a "retainer" so the Bidens would deal with a number of issues, including an investigation that Ukrainian prosecutor Viktor Shokin launched against the company, as reported by Fox News.

The Burisma executive, according to Grassley, also said the payments were done "through so many different accounts" that investigators would likely need more than a decade to "unravel" it.

It is unclear who Grassley is referring to as the Burisma executive as the name is redacted in the FD-1023 form shown on the Senate floor. However, one source familiar with the form told the outlet that the executive could be referring to Mykola Zlochesky, head of Burisma.

It is important to note that the FD-1023 form is essentially used by the FBI to acknowledge that an interview with a "confidential human source" took place. It is also used to record unverified information.

In addition to the claims in the redacted form, Grassley also said that the Burisma executive had kept at least 15 audio recordings of his conversations with Hunter and two recordings of meeting with Joe for a total of 17 recordings as "insurance."

"Let me assist for purposes of transparency. The 1023 [form] produced to that House Committee redacted reference that the foreign national who allegedly bribed Joe and Hunter Biden allegedly has audio recordings of his conversations with them. Seventeen total recordings," Grassley said on the Senate floor.

"According to the 1023, the foreign national possesses fifteen audio recordings of phone calls between him and Hunter Biden. According to the 1023, the foreign national possesses two audio recordings of phone calls between him and then-Vice President Joe Biden. These recordings were allegedly kept as a sort of insurance policy for the foreign national in case he got into a tight spot. The 1023 also indicates that then-Vice President Joe Biden may have been involved in Burisma employing Hunter Biden," the senator added.

It is unclear if the FBI possesses any of the alleged audio recordings.