According to documents obtained by Fox News, the infamous laptop purportedly owned by Hunter Biden was subpoenaed by the FBI in December 2019 as part of a money laundering investigation.

The laptop in question has been at the center of a firestorm of controversy after the New York Post ran a story alleging that a copy of the laptop's hard drive, which was provided to them by former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, contained emails from Hunter Biden to his foreign business partners, in which he appeared to leverage his relationship with then-Vice President Joe Biden and in which his partners claimed to have successfully obtained a meeting with Joe Biden due to Hunter's efforts.

The story gained additional traction when social media giants Twitter and Facebook took extreme measures to suppress the spread of the story before any efforts were made to ascertain whether or not it was true. The New York Post's Twitter account remained locked for at least a week after publication of the story, and angry Republicans have promised lawsuits and congressional investigations into Facebook and Twitter's efforts to thwart spread of the story.

Subsequent investigations have revealed that the original laptop is real and does exist, and is in possession of the FBI. Reports from earlier this week indicated that the FBI had subpoenaed the laptop as part of an investigation, but details were not clear as to the nature or target of the investigation.

Now, however, the subpoenas, which have been obtained by Fox News, indicate that the nature of that investigation was one into money laundering, although it is not yet clear who the target of the investigation was, or what role the contents of the laptop might play in that investigation.

The subpoena, which was dated Dec. 9, 2019, is addressed to John Paul Mac Isaac, the owner of the Mac repair shop where Hunter Biden allegedly left the fateful laptop in question. The subpoena directs him to give testimony and also seems to indicate that a laptop was taken into possession by the FBI.

In response to the news, a spokesman for the Biden campaign intimated to Fox News that the money laundering investigation may have been into Giuliani's dealings, rather than Hunter Biden's.

"The Attorney General of Delaware's office indicated that the FBI has 'ongoing investigations regarding the veracity of this entire story.' And it would be unsurprising for an investigation of a disinformation action involving Rudy Giuliani and those assisting him to involve questions about money laundering, especially since there are other documented inquiries into his dealings," Biden spokesperson Andrew Bates said.

Additionally, an attorney for the Biden campaign commented, "Criminal investigations of Russian disinformation campaigns that include the witting participation of American citizens like Rudy Giuliani often involve investigation by the FBI of whether the American has received payment for these activities that would implicate the Federal Money Laundering statutes."

It should be noted, however, that United States intelligence agencies, including the Department of Justice and FBI, have forcefully indicated that the laptop is not part of a Russian disinformation campaign.