Two people plead guilty to federal charges in theft of diary belonging to Ashley Biden

Two Florida residents have pleaded guilty to federal charges, in plotting to steal a diary reportedly belonging to Ashley Biden, the daughter of President Joe Biden.

The charges relate to actions “involving the theft of personal belongings of an immediate family member of a then former government official who was a candidate for national political office.” 

Neither Joe Biden nor Ashley Biden was mentioned in the charge sheet, which was typed up on Thursday.

Aimee Harris, 40, and Robert Kurlander, 58, confessed to stealing the diary from Ashley Biden’s residence Delray Beach, which she was renting, before selling it to James O’Keefe’s organization Project Veritas for $40,000, prosecutors and law enforcement officials have confirmed. Kurlander has agreed to co-operate with federal prosecutors as part of his plea agreement.  

Aimee Harrs, a resident of Palm Beach, briefly stayed at the same residence where Ashley had lived and stumbled upon items which included a journal with “highly personal entries” along with a digital storage card that the victim left behind, as per the charge sheet. The charge sheet goes on to say that Harris then solicited Kurlander’s help in selling the diary.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damian Williams issued a statement regarding the case on Thursday noting that, “Harris and Kurlander stole personal property from an immediate family member of a candidate for national political office.”

“They sold the property to an organization in New York for $40,000 and even returned to take more of the victim’s property when asked to do so,” Williams said. “Harris and Kurlander sought to profit from their theft of another person’s personal property, and they now stand convicted of a federal felony as a result.”

Both Harris and Kurlander have agreed to forfeit $20,000 as part of their guilty pleas. Both Harris and Kurlander face a maximum of 5 years in prison.

The FBI in November raided Project Veritas CEO James O’Keefe’s home, as well as multiple other associates of Project Veritas, in search of the diary. O’Keefe said at the time that “tipsters” had approached Project Veritas the year before, claiming to have Ashley Biden’s diary, which they alleged contained “explosive allegations” against Joe Biden. O’Keefe said that the two tipsters had been attempting to sell the diary to media outlets.

O’Keefe said that he was approached with the diary, however he said his organization declined to publish the contents and instead turned the diary over to law enforcement.

“At the end of the day, we made the ethical decision that because, in part, we could not determine if the diary was real, if the diary in fact belonged to Ashley Biden, or if the contents of the diary occurred, we could not publish the diary and any part thereof,” O’Keefe said in his statement.