Whoa.
Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, pro-Trump Super PAC donors with ties to Rudy Giuliani, were reportedly arrested on Wednesday and charged with violating U.S. campaign finance law:
NEWS: Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, two Giuliani associates who donated to a pro-Trump super PAC, were arrested late Wednesday on criminal charges of violating campaign finance rules. They have been under investigation by SDNY. w/@aviswanatha @sgurmanhttps://t.co/GVkMSzBWZv
— Rebecca Ballhaus (@rebeccaballhaus) October 10, 2019
Parnas and Fruman in May 2018 donated $325,000 to America First Action, a pro-Trump super PAC, through an LLC called Global Energy Producers. Campaign Legal Center filed a complaint with the FEC in July 2018 calling on them to investigate the donation. https://t.co/GVkMSzBWZv
— Rebecca Ballhaus (@rebeccaballhaus) October 10, 2019
They were also helping Rudy investigate Joe Biden:
Breaking: Two foreign-born men who helped Rudy Giuliani's efforts to investigate Joe Biden were arrested in the U.S. on charges of violating campaign-finance rules, say people familiar with the matter https://t.co/wtVpegmrwB
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) October 10, 2019
From the WSJ:
Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, two Florida businessmen, have been under investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan, and are expected to appear in federal court in Virginia later on Thursday, the people said. The men’s nationalities was unclear, though both were believed to have been born in former Soviet republics.
Mr. Giuliani, President Trump’s private lawyer, identified the two men in May as his clients. Both men have donated to Republican campaigns including Mr. Trump’s, and in May 2018 gave $325,000 to the primary pro-Trump super PAC, America First Action, through an LLC called Global Energy Producers, according to Federal Election Commission records.
And their lawyer — who used to be the president’s lawyer — puts Trump right in the middle of all this:
John Dowd, a former Trump lawyer who is representing Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, wrote in a letter to House committees last week that they were assisting Rudy Giuliani "in connection with his representation of President Trump." https://t.co/HM8JvX0ToJ
— Rebecca Ballhaus (@rebeccaballhaus) October 10, 2019
The SDNY has confirmed their arrest:
NOW: Spokesperson for SDNY US attorney's office has confirmed Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman are in custody, and that it's an SDNY case https://t.co/fB0b1TArMF
— Zoe Tillman (@ZoeTillman) October 10, 2019
***
Join the conversation as a VIP Member