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."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
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.
-
August 16 editorial cartoonsCartoons Saturday’s political cartoons include football season anticipation, and Donald Trump angling for Putin's autograph
-
5 hilariously cold cartoons about the Alaska summitCartoons Artists take on the Alaskan totem pole, a peace flag, and more
-
Crossword: August 16, 2025The Week's daily crossword puzzle
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, StalloneSpeed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's viewSpeed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talkSpeed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
5 best movie sequels of all timeThe Week Recommends The second time is only sometimes as good as the first
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposesspeed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wifespeed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play
-
Giant schnauzer wins top prize at Westminster showSpeed Read Monty won best in show at the 149th Westminster Kennel Club dog show
