Associates allege Rudy Giuliani was a partner in a major Ukrainian energy project

Federal prosecutors have reportedly launched a probe into the possibility that President Trump's personal lawyer and fixer Rudy Giuliani stood to personally gain from a Ukrainian natural-gas business, people familiar with the investigation told The Wall Street Journal. The energy business — which looked at building a potential Poland-to-Ukraine pipeline to ferry U.S. natural gas — was hawked by Giuliani's associates, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman. Those associates have since been indicted for a campaign finance violation as well as served as key figures in the alleged attempts to pressure the Ukrainian government into investigating the Bidens on Trump's behalf.

Giuliani denied involvement in Parnas and Fruman's energy company, Global Energy Producers, telling the Journal he has "no personal interest in any business in Ukraine, including that business." A person familiar with the investigation claimed Parnas and Fruman contradictorily said Giuliani was a partner on the pipeline project. The two associates were arrested in October and have pleaded not guilty to their charges.

The Wall Street Journal writes that the gas project, despite facing obstacles, "had the potential to be extremely lucrative, people familiar with the pitch said." The Journal added that "it couldn't be determined what criminal charges, if any, prosecutors would weigh in connection with Mr. Giuliani's alleged interest in Global Energy Producers."

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Last month, the Journal first reported that federal investigators in Manhattan were taking a closer look at Giuliani's business dealings in Ukraine. At that time, the scope of the inquiry was unknown, although Giuliani had boasted that "they can look at my Ukraine business all they want." Read Friday's full scoop at The Wall Street Journal, and more about Giuliani's alleged corruption at The Week.