WASHINGTON • President-elect Joe Biden’s son Hunter said Wednesday that he is facing a federal investigation into his taxes, putting a renewed spotlight on the questions about his financial dealings that dogged his father’s campaign.

Federal investigators served a round of subpoenas on Tuesday, including to Hunter Biden, according to a person familiar with the investigation who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing probe.

The tax investigation centers on his business dealings, the person said.

The Justice Department’s investigation, centering on potential tax fraud crimes, had been going on at least a year before President-elect Biden announced his candidacy, according to another person familiar with the matter.

Investigators did not reach out in the weeks prior because of a Justice Department policy surrounding elections that prohibits overt investigative acts.

In a statement released by the president-elect’s transition office, Hunter Biden said he learned about the investigation on Tuesday but did not disclose specifics about what was being scrutinized.

“I take this matter very seriously but I am confident that a professional and objective review of these matters will demonstrate that I handled my affairs legally and appropriately, including with the benefit of professional tax advisors,” he said in a statement.

He has long been a target of President Donald Trump and his allies, who have accused him of profiting off his political connections.

Trump and his supporters also raised unsubstantiated charges of corruption related to Hunter Biden’s work in Ukraine at the time his father was vice president and leading the Obama administration’s dealings with the Eastern European nation. The disclosure of the federal investigation, led by the U.S. attorney’s office in Delaware, comes at an awkward moment for the incoming president, who is assembling his Cabinet.

His pick for attorney general could have oversight of the investigation into the new president’s son if it is still ongoing when Biden is sworn in on Jan. 20.

The transition team said in a statement: “President-elect Biden is deeply proud of his son, who has fought through difficult challenges, including the vicious personal attacks of recent months, only to emerge stronger.”

Hunter has been caught up in controversies before.While his father was vice president, Hunter joined the Naval Reserve only to be discharged after testing positive for cocaine, later revealing a yearslong struggle with addiction. He also joined the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma in 2014, sparking concerns about the perceptions of a conflict of interest given the elder Biden was deeply involved in U.S. policy toward Ukraine.

President-elect Joe Biden, right, embraces his son Hunter in Wilmington, Del., in November.

the associated press