NEW YORK – Lev Parnas, a former partner of Rudy Giuliani, was sentenced Wednesday to 20 months in prison for defrauding investors in a fake company and for making illegal donations to U.S. political candidates on behalf of a Russian businessman.
Parnas was convicted in a lawsuit on charges related to campaign funding last year and pleaded guilty separately to stealing investment funds from a defunct commercial entity called the Fraud Guarantee.
He personally pocketed $ 2 million.
Parnas was affiliated with Giuliani while working on behalf of President Donald Trump to seek incriminating information about Joe Biden and his son Hunter in Ukraine before the 2020 election.
Although New York federal prosecutors have also been investigating Giuliani for his business in Ukraine during this time period, he has not been charged.
Parnas and another man, Igor Fruman, were discussed at Trump’s first impeachment trial, which focused on the then president’s alleged campaign to pressure Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to announce an investigation into the Biden.
The Republican majority in the Senate acquitted Trump of the misconduct.
This is a developing story. It will be updated.