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

Rudy Giuliani.
(Image credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

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.

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Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.