Rudy cronies likely to face new charges

Prosecutors expect to bring new charges in a case against two Rudy Giuliani flunkies implicated in the former mayor’s shady diplomacy in Ukraine.

Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman are charged with using a shell company to make $325,000 in illegal straw donations to a pro-Trump political committee. They also allegedly donated $20,000 to former GOP Rep. Pete Sessions as part of a pressure campaign, which was ultimately successful, to have President Trump remove Marie Yovanovitch as ambassador to Ukraine.

The allegations are at the heart of the impeachment inquiry into whether Trump abused his office for political gain by pushing Ukraine to investigate Democratic presidential contender Joe Biden. Prosecutors are reportedly investigating Giuliani — who has ties to the Soviet-born businessmen — as part of the criminal probe.

“Certainly the government’s investigation is ongoing,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas Zolkind said Monday in Manhattan Federal Court.

“We think a superseding indictment is likely, but no decision has been made,” he added.

Zolkind did not specify what the new charges could be or whether other individuals would be charged in the case.

Since the charges were revealed in October, prosecutors have been gathering a vast amount of evidence from electronic devices and elsewhere. One hard drive of evidence contained 70,000 pages — and it’s possible that’s not even the majority of paperwork, Parnas attorney Joseph Bondy said.

Authorities seized eight cell phones from Parnas. They seized three cell phones and a satellite phone from Fruman. Both men have pleaded not guilty.

Fruman, as well as two other men charged in a related scheme, David Correia and Andrey Kukushkin, were not present for the hearing.

Parnas is eager to turn over Ukraine-related documents to Democrats conducting the impeachment inquiry, but prosecutors currently have most of the material, Bondy said. The lawyer vowed to give Congress the missing records as soon as prosecutors return them.