Rudy Giuliani's indicted Ukraine henchmen funneled money from a Russian businessman: Feds

Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, the two henchmen who helped Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani arrange meetings with Ukrainian officials, have been accused of taking money from an unidentified Russian businessman and illegally funneling it to Republican candidates.

In the indictment released by the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, Parnas and Fruman are alleged to have "conspired to make political donations" to political candidates using money provided by a person identified only as "Foreign National-1."

According to the indictment, this individual "is a foreign national Russian citizen and businessman who, at all relevant times, was not a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States."

Parnas, Fruman and their associates used the money from this Russian national to donate to political candidates who were in positions to help them set up a medical marijuana business, SDNY alleges.

Parnas and Fruman on Wednesday were arrested and indicted on campaign-finance charges. They have emerged as key figures in the scandal surrounding President Donald Trump’s efforts to pressure the Ukrainian government to launch investigations against his political opponents. The two businessmen helped arrange meetings between Giuliani and Ukrainian prosecutor Yuri Lutsenko, who at one point claimed to have dirt on the Bidens.