A federal judge has ordered former Overstock.com CEO Patrick Byrne to pay Hunter Biden $1.7 million after finding that Byrne knowingly spread false statements about the president's son seeking bribes from Iran.
U.S. District Judge Stephen Wilson ruled that Byrne fabricated a story claiming Hunter Biden had reached out to the Iranian government in 2021 with an offer to unfreeze $8 billion in Iranian funds in exchange for money. The judge found no credible evidence for the allegations and concluded Byrne deliberately manufactured the narrative to damage Biden's reputation.
In his written decision, Wilson noted that Byrne continued making the same claims publicly even after court proceedings began, suggesting a calculated strategy rather than innocent error. The judge wrote that Byrne relied on sources that were "unreliable or biased" and acted out of "hostility and anger" toward Biden and his family.
"Overall, in the totality of circumstances, by far the most plausible explanation is that Defendant is not credible, fabricates awesome and farfetched narratives to garner attention in the media, and fabricated the defamatory story at issue in this case to damage Plaintiff's reputation," Wilson wrote.
Byrne's legal team hampered the case by firing his attorney and missing multiple scheduled court appearances, including failing to appear for jury trial. The delays and procedural absences reinforced Wilson's assessment that the defendant was not taking the proceedings seriously.
Hunter Biden, who received a presidential pardon from his father in 2024, has posted multiple times on social media celebrating the ruling. "His lies caused real damage and endangered my family," Biden wrote. "The court determined that everything he said about me was a complete fiction."
Byrne stepped down as Overstock CEO in 2019 following controversial statements about his involvement in "deep state" investigations and alleged interference in the 2016 election. He has long positioned himself as a Trump ally and has repeatedly amplified election fraud claims.
Author Sarah Mitchell: "This verdict sends a clear message that spinning baseless conspiracy theories for media attention carries real legal consequences, even when the target is a president's son."
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